Gypsie's, Tramps, and Thieves
by spikesduck
Summary: Two weeks after the events of Abandon All Hope, and Bobby sends our boys to Wisconsin maybe Dean/OFC and Sam OFC... not quite there yet ... I'm trying to tie this into the show so bear with me...
1. Chapter 1

**Gypsy's, Tramps, and Thieves!**

**Author – **Benaboo

**Rating **– I don't know? What's the normal show rating? I'll say NC-17 for now! I'm trying to make this out like an episode, so I have no clue what the rating will be, because there is some sex in the episodes although we don't see everything… so feedback on this will be greatly appreciated.

**Genre – **Horror, maybe some sex … I don't know yet I haven't gotten to that part!

**Characters – **Sam, Dean, Bobby, Castiel… maybe a Sam/OFC and/or Dean/OFC… some original characters I created for the purposes of this story.

**Spoilers – **Takes place during season 5, after Abandon All Hope. Don't read it if you're not up to date with the show. Sam and Dean go to a small town in Wisconsin when Bobby sends them there to help some old friends.

**Warnings – **violence, some gore, language, and maybe explicit sex later? Haven't gotten there yet!

**Setting – **This takes place a couple of weeks after AAH. I'm putting the boys back in my home state of Wisconsin, because I love it when they go there!

**Title – **Taken from the song by Cher back in the 1970's

**Chapter One – Bobby Asks a Favor**

Dean Winchester looked over at his brother Sam, sleeping on the sofa. He looked so comfortable lying there, one leg off the couch and his mouth opened just enough to emit a slight snore, clutching a pillow with one arm and the other arm hanging just a bit loose off the couch. Dean wished he could sleep like that, peaceful and comfortable, but the events of two weeks prior still haunted him, and he couldn't shake them from his mind no matter how hard he tried. He knew Sam couldn't stop thinking about it either, but Sam had been able to at least come to terms with it more than Dean himself had. All he could think about the last couple weeks were the hell hound attack, Jo saving his life and giving up hers in the process, and the explosion that killed Ellen and Jo, if Jo hadn't died before that. He didn't know, she had been pretty bad off; the wound she had was so nasty, she wouldn't have survived even if they had managed to get her to a hospital. The entire incident haunted him. This was why he couldn't fall asleep willingly, because every time he closed his eyes the entire mess would flash back before his eyes, and all he could see was Jo being gored and the building exploding. The only time he could sleep was when he was up for days at a time and he couldn't keep his eyelids opened any longer, and even then, the nightmares were there, a constant companion to share in the guilt and grief he felt over the loss of his friends.

Friends? They were more like family really. Dean knew no one could replace their mom, but Ellen Harvelle had become like a surrogate mother to them, especially in the last few months. She had been so mad when she saw them again, that they had not called or kept in touch. Neither of the brothers had realized just how much they had come to mean to Ellen when they had first met her and Jo, especially since their father had slipped up and it cost Ellen's husband Bill his life. However she never held that against them, even though she had been so angry that Jo went to Philadelphia on that hunt with them. But again, in the last few months they had all become even closer, even after everything Dean and Sam had done to bring on this screwed up apocalypse. He remembered clearly the day he and Sam had told the Harvelle women everything that brought this on, right here in fact, in the middle of Bobby's living room. The brothers had been really scared that they would get told off and blamed for the entire thing, but Ellen had put their fears to rest when she had said, "You boys sure are in the middle of a mess, but the fault lies with the angels and demons. So I guess we have to clean it up before those bastards make it even worse." There were no harsh words, mean looks, or blame, just acceptance, camaraderie, and love of all things. It had been all unspoken, but it had been there, from Ellen and also from Jo.

Jo. He wouldn't let Sam or Bobby see it when he cried for her. The hole he felt at her loss was beyond anything he had felt before, and the guilt of her giving her life to protect him overwhelmed him to the point he just felt like shutting down. Dean wasn't great at expressing his feelings, so he kept what he could feel to himself, but Jo had meant something to him although he had not known just what that something was. She could irritate him like Sam did, in a little sister type way, and other times he felt like she could see right through him, understand him even, like no other woman could. He had always thought he had loved his ex Cassie, and he knew he had had feelings for his old flame Lisa, but it was entirely different with Jo. She never let him get away with his usual bullshit, she could hold her own against him, and she knew better than anyone what the life of a hunter entailed. Dean was devastated that he would never see her again, unless he died and went to wherever she was. Probably heaven, which at this point he didn't see himself going to, regardless of the angels wanting him and all the things he did to make for the type of person he felt that he really was. The worst part of re-living that day was seeing Jo mauled to shreds, and knowing exactly what that felt like, having gone through it himself, and not being able to stop it from happening to her. It didn't matter what anyone else thought, he just knew deep down that it was his fault, and Sam and Bobby trying to tell him it wasn't just made it worse.

Dean shook the thoughts he was having out of his head the best that he could and picked up the television remote. It was three in the morning, and as he flipped through the channels nothing seemed to be on except infomercials and boring re-runs of television shows that he had seen a million times. It was really weird for him to watch television these days after Gabriel zapping him and Sam into a mock TV Land. At that moment, a tiny part of Dean thought that maybe he and Sam should have said yes and just got all this over with, and then maybe Ellen and Jo would be some of the human beings still alive after it all. He immediately regretted it though, because he knew the women wouldn't have wanted him to go through the could a, would a, should a, bit; that would just make their deaths even more meaningless, although Dean would love Ellen to be there to slap him right about now just for the thought. He felt the tears coming on again, but he held them back. Though Sam and Bobby were both fast asleep he had to do his best to practice keeping his tears in check, as he didn't want them to see him break down any further. He knew that he and Sam would have to start looking for jobs soon, and he had to put on the appearance of giving a damn at the very least. Deciding that there was no time like the present, Dean turned off the TV and got up. Just as he was about to walk toward the door to go get in the car and run for a few papers to look through, he heard a faint buzzing behind him, a vibration. He turned to look and saw that it was Bobby's cell phone, not only buzzing but lighting up with a phone number on it.

Curiosity got the better of him, and wondering who could be calling this early in the morning he picked up the cell and looked at the number calling in. Dean was pretty good with area codes, hell, so was Sam, they'd had to phone each other from all over the country, so the older Winchester immediately recognized the 608 as being Wisconsin. He wondered for a moment, who Bobby would know in Wisconsin, but Bobby knew a lot of people, most of them hunters; although given the apocalypse they were dropping like flies these days. He really hoped it wasn't the two hunters Sam had told him about that cornered his brother in that tavern in Oklahoma and tried to shove demon blood down his throat. He wasn't sure that he could handle that right now; then again maybe giving those two a good beating would be good therapy. Dean was a little irate that Bobby sent them there, but he knew the old man didn't know they would flip out on Sam like that, so he couldn't hold it against him. It didn't matter now, if someone was calling at this time of the morning it must be important, and since Bobby was asleep Dean decided there was no harm in answering and taking a message if need be. He flipped open the cell and hit the green button.

"Hello?"

"Bobby? Is this Bobby Singer?"

Dean was surprised at the young female voice that came through over the phone. She couldn't have sounded any older than fifteen and he was being generous thinking even that. What really got to him was the sound of desperation in her voice, and fear. She sounded really scared.

"No, this is his friend Dean. Bobby's asleep right now…" he couldn't finish his sentence before she interrupted him.

"Could you please wake him up? It's really important that I speak with him. Please?" hearing her voice speak further he could hear the fear in her voice clearer than ever, and he decided to do his best to calm her down if he could.

"Ok Sweetheart, listen to me, can you tell me what's going on? I could wake Bobby up in a little bit and tell him what's going on and maybe have him call you right back?"

She started to cry and it made Dean feel worse. "I'm so sorry Dean, you sound nice, but I was told I had to talk to Bobby and only Bobby, that he would be the only one to understand what's going on. And I'm at a pay phone and something could be following me I don't know. I don't have much time before I have to get out of here. So please Dean, I don't care if he'll be mad please, just wake him up!"

Dean started to walk to Bobby's room as he continued to talk with the girl. "Ok I understand, but could you at least tell me your name? Just in case he starts throwing stuff at me, you know for getting him up so early." He was relieved to hear a slight muffled giggle, which meant at least he was doing all he could to keep her as calm as he could.

"Samantha. Tell him I'm Elaine's daughter."

Dean had just made it to Bobby's door and opened it, and he peered in at his older father figure's sleeping frame. "Samantha, nice to meet you. Ok, I'm gonna try waking him up now, so if you hear lots of yelling, cursing and things crashing you know its not going well."

She snickered a little more through her tears. "Ok Dean, but please hurry! I have to get going soon."

"I hear ya. Just hold on." Dean sighed. He didn't want to startle Bobby too much, God only knew what would happen if he did. He wasn't going to let Samantha down though, so he walked over to the bed, put his arm on Bobby and shook him gently saying, "Bobby! Wake up phone ca…" he didn't get to finish though because the old man woke up and had a gun pointed in his face faster than all get out. "Bobby! It's me Dean! I'm not possessed! Just got a phone call for you."

Bobby reached over and turned on the light, looking at his alarm clock, and was slightly irritated. He lowered the gun; although the irritated look remained, plastered to his face as if to say it was some kind of joke. "What? You couldn't have taken a message kid? It's three thirty in the morning! Idjiot!"

Dean rolled his eyes at the all too common nickname he and Sam were used to being called and let it go for the moment. "I tried to take a message but she said it was too important and that she was only supposed to speak to you. Her name is Samantha and she sounds scared, and she said her mother is Elaine…" again Dean didn't get his entire sentence out before Bobby grabbed the phone and interrupted him.

"Well why didn't you tell me that in the first place?" the old man grumbled, before he put the phone to his ear and before Dean could say anything else. Dean gave him an irritable look of his own before Bobby started talking and seeming to ignore him. Dean shook his head and made to walk away but Bobby waved him back, so he pulled up one of the chairs in the room and listened to Bobby's one-sided conversation with Samantha.

"Samantha is it? This is Bobby. Is Elaine ok?" There was silence from Bobby, but Dean could hear Samantha's voice coming over the cell, although he had no clue as to what she said.

"Hey kid, it's alright, we'll get through this. Where are your sisters? Your aunt and cousins?" Again there was silence from Bobby, as he listened to what the young girl had to say. Dean could see the old man's face wrinkle up in a serious worried look, and he knew Bobby wasn't getting good news.

"Alright darlin', I'll make this fast so you can get somewhere safe. I can't come personally I'm laid up, but I'm gonna send my two best boys to you guys, and they'll protect you and help you with this." Bobby paused for a moment and shot Dean a look. "Yeah, Dean's one of them." Another pause. "Yes I suppose he does seem nice. So, where exactly are you at the moment?" Bobby reached for a pen and a tablet of paper and wrote down what was being relayed to him, and then confirmed it back to Samantha.

"Ok Richland Center at the Park View Motel? Do you have a phone in your room? Ok, do you remember the number? Oh no hunny, don't cry, its ok, how about the room number? Ok I got it. Now listen, I'm gonna let Sam and Dean know what's going on and they'll come up there to help. Just get back to your sisters and the room and make sure you demon proof the place." Some more silence followed Bobby's order to the young girl and then Bobby spoke again closing the call. "Alright Kid, you be safe and you just hang tight 'til my boys get there. Yup bye." Bobby let out a long sigh as he hung up the phone, and pinched the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger, his eyes squeezed shut momentarily. Dean gave him that moment and then he spoke up so they could get started on what they had to do.

"So, it looks like Sam and I are going to Wisconsin? I guess this is pretty important."

Bobby shook his head and opened his eyes and looked at Dean with another heavy sigh. "Yeah, you boys are going alright, its very important. So go wake up Sam and get some coffee brewing. We have to be quick about this and I have to fill you in before you go there, and that's bad enough. Can't send you in blind though, you have to be prepared."

Dean couldn't hide his look of puzzlement. "Prepared for what?"

"On how to protect those girls. Now skedaddle would ya? Wake Sam and coffee! Shoo!" Dean shrugged a little and disappeared from Bobby's view leaving the older man alone.

As Bobby got in his wheelchair he began to wonder if it was the right time to send Dean off on this particular mission. He knew that boy well, and Dean had been changed in the last few weeks, on edge, crying when he thought no one was looking and indifferent about his surroundings. He knew the kid was grieving and then some. And Dean and Sam were like the sons he never got the chance to have, so when one of them was feeling this way it got to him deep in his gut. He wished they could be normal boys, with wives and kids and homes and careers, but the ugly truth was that all that got screwed up the day their momma had died, and Bobby knew it. No matter how messed up Dean was right now he was all Bobby had, and Sam, and he didn't trust any other hunters to protect those girls. So Sam and Dean it was. He didn't trust anyone else with Elaine's kids. He owed Elaine the very best he could do, and since he couldn't do it himself the Winchesters would have to.

Bobby rolled out of his room, and closed the door behind him, hoping against all hope that sending Dean in wouldn't be a mistake.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two – The Secret Job**

Sam sipped on his coffee and tried to keep his eyes open. Dean had just woken him up ten minutes ago from a deep sleep, which he had not had in weeks, hell, months. He wished he could just crawl back on the couch and pass out, but from what Dean had told him, Bobby had a job for them, and from what little he knew of that it did seem important. All he did know at this point was that there was a phone call from a scared little girl in Wisconsin and Bobby knew her family somehow, and that they were in serious trouble. The kind of trouble Sam and Dean were used to. He and his brother were used to all sorts of trouble, and not just of the supernatural kind. Sam and Dean had been trained well by their father, John Winchester, and even though Sam had always butted heads with him he was grateful that his father had given him and Dean that training to survive what was really out there. It had been rough going at times, especially since Sam had been very rebellious and had not wanted to do any of it, but over the past few years he had come to an understanding about it, made his peace with it even. Although he did wish sometimes that it wasn't his family that had been singled out for this entire apocalypse and angels and demons crap. He wanted his mother and father alive, and for him and Dean to be able to live normal lives and he knew Dean felt the same.

Sam pondered over what normal really was. He had had it once, briefly, for a few years when he had went off to attend college at Stanford. Those three years had been the best years of his life. He had not only been going to school, but he made friends who all had regular everyday lives, and although he had felt awkward for a while he had finally managed to fit in with a nice group of kids around his age who didn't seem to mind that he didn't talk about his family or life prior much. They tried to get him to talk about his family at first, but even though Sam never gave them his life story, they eventually backed off and just let it be. Well, almost all of them. There was this one girl that seemed very interested in him and what he had to say, she even told him outright she wanted to know everything about him. Of course, that was after a night of discussing some Shakespeare and consuming huge amounts of tequila. He had been quite intoxicated after they were about to part that he had almost forgotten to ask her name, almost. So he asked her and she grabbed a napkin and wrote her name and phone number down, handed it to him and told him to call her sometime.

Jessica. Sam missed her terribly. He felt so guilty about her death, it ate him up inside. He never told her about everything for fear she would never have anything to do with him again, and it still led to her being killed by yellow eyes. From time to time over the past five years he wondered if telling her the truth about this part of his life would have saved her, but he always came to the conclusion that it would not have mattered, that yellow eyes would have found a way to eliminate her from his life one way or another. Sam knew it was his fault, he never should have gotten involved with her in the first place, and now Jessica was dead because of him. When he closed his eyes he could see her how she was before death, wishing he could go back there and at least try to do it over, regardless if it would help or not. All he wanted to do was just hold her again, even for a moment, and kiss her and make love to her, a chance to say goodbye like he didn't have before. Sometimes he felt that her spirit was watching him, so angry at him that she would come back for vengeance for what he had done to get her killed, and the deepest part of him wished she would just come back and kill him, he felt he deserved it. Of course, as far as he knew the angels or Lucifer would just resurrect him to make him play his part in this little spontaneous apocalypse of theirs, so dying was a bit out of the question at this point.

Sam thought maybe that was the point though, that death was too good for him and that he was meant to suffer. Dying didn't necessarily meant he'd suffer, unless he went to Hell like Dean had, and he had no idea. Unlike Dean, who knew he was going to Hell when the hell hounds came after him and remembered actually being in Hell and all the torture, Sam had no memory of where he had been when he died at the hands of Jake almost 3 years back. It was like someone had erased his memory of it. He wouldn't be surprised. When Dean was dying a while back after the car crash, he was brought back to life after John made a deal, with no memory of what happened until they ran into Tessa again last year. Sam knew it was most likely someone didn't want him to remember his after life for those three days he was gone, but dwelling on it wouldn't get him any closer to knowing the truth.

Sam's thoughts were interrupted when a hand touched him on his shoulder. Taken by surprised he jumped and looked to his left to see Bobby there beside him in his wheelchair. It still wasn't easy for Sam to see Bobby not being able to walk, but he did his best to try. He loved Bobby; the old man made him feel like he was his own and that endeared Sam to him in a way he never felt with John. He couldn't even think of Bobby being possessed though, without it making him want to cry. Remembering those harsh words just got him in the gut and it hadn't been Bobby that said it, just a demon, so Sam buried that thought and smiled weakly at the man at his side.

"Hey Bobby, I'm sorry about that, you just startled me. I guess I was just spacing out there for a minute, I'm not quite awake."

Bobby just smiled. "Its ok kid, but you gotta wake up though, you guys have to know what's going on before you head to cheese land, and you have to leave soon."

Sam nodded as Dean walked into the living room and sat down on the couch that he recently vacated and secretly longed for. "How are ya doin' there Sammy?"

"I'm as awake as I'll ever be. Fill us in Bobby, so we can hit the road."

Bobby sighed and turned his wheelchair so he was facing Sam, with Dean in the corner of his eye to his left. "Alright, well how much do you guys know about the persecution of witches throughout history?" he asked.

Sam gave Bobby a puzzled look while Dean just snorted and spoke up. "The persecution of witches throughout history? Are you serious?" he asked, not believing what he heard come out of Bobby's mouth.

"Yes I'm serious you Idjiot, and how many times am I gonna hafta call you that this morning?" Bobby gave a sharp look at Dean who had a smirk on his face, and turned back to Sam. "I was thinking you might know a little about this Sam, so what do you know?"

It was Sam's turn to sigh, and he blew out a deep breath before he tried to remember what he knew about the subject, which was a little tough since he wasn't sure he was awake enough to discuss history at the moment. "Well, from what I can remember the persecution of witches started around 500 BC maybe? Or at least the idea that witches shouldn't be allowed to live, but the actual torture didn't start taking place until the mid 1400's under a papal inquisition if I remember correctly."

Bobby looked impressed. "You're doing good kid. What else do you know about it?"

Sam continued. "Well there was the Malleus Maleficarum, which was basically a "how to" on witches and how to eliminate them, and telling Christians it was their duty to hunt them down and destroy them. The book itself was revised many times to add how to deal with said witches, and a lot of the information in the book was just far fetched, but a lot of people believed it. Of course the Church, along with the book targeted women more than anything, especially the ones that could think for themselves and didn't have husbands, because back then if you were single or not obedient to your husband they branded you a witch." Sam sighed before he continued. "I hope I'm remembering all this right."

Bobby nodded and Sam took that as a cue to finish up what he had started. "Witchcraft hysteria swept through Europe like an uncontained wild fire. I can't remember the exact number but tens of thousands of witches were executed, again, most of them women. Women went into hiding, some men and their children, moving around a lot to escape the injustices of the system. No one knows how many accused actually escaped persecution, but most theologians say not many. Of course, there was also the Salem witch trials in Massachusetts, but that event in history didn't come close to what happened in Europe, although they did hang and burn mostly women as witches as well." Sam blew out a breath. "That's all I got, Bobby, I'd have to do more research to come up with names and dates and such. I'm sorry."

Bobby looked fondly at Sam. "That's ok kid; you got the gist of it, the important stuff that history has remembered."

Dean piped up. "Ok, I'm not trying to start anything Bobby, but why the history lesson on witches? I mean they're evil; and skeevy; and they kill poor defenseless bunnies. Oh and you know they KILL people!"

Bobby shot a glare Dean's way and retorted in a very sarcastic manner. "I know that you dumb ass! Do think I'd waste my time on drilling unimportant shit into your head? Well? Do you?" When Dean didn't answer Bobby just sighed and turned back to Sam. "Now you both got a history refresher, and I'm gonna fill in the blanks."

The old man took a sip of coffee and looked to the ceiling. "There were a few families, women mostly and some men that were accused and escaped persecution from the hatred that spread for witches during the European hunt, of which there were a good dozen or so. All of them had survived since before BC times, and they always kept very detailed accounts of their family bloodlines and history, going down through the ages."

"I guess that means they have a good grip on their family genealogies huh?" Sam interjected.

Bobby nodded. "Yup, they do, and they survived the times and went into hiding anywhere they felt was safe. Some of them headed to Africa and Australia, and some of them just kept moving around from country to country, never staying in one place long enough to attract too much attention to themselves. I guess you could have called them gypsies, although they were not like most gypsies since they had to keep a very low profile, so they would only stay put a few days to a week at most before they moved on."

Sam nodded at Bobby's explanation. He could not imagine how scary it would be to have to be constantly on the run for fear an angry mob would set you on fire, or hang you, or possibly even worse. Especially for something you had never done, but just because you were different, and Sam Winchester could relate to being different.

"Now all the families that escaped were intertwined with each other…" before Bobby could continue Dean laughed and decided it was the right time to make a bad joke.

"Inbred European witches huh? None of them would happen to have the last name Bender would they?"

Bobby shot him another angry glare. "Boy, would you shut your mouth and let me finish what I have to say? Idjiot!" Dean just smiled and held up his hands in surrender, before putting them back down. The smile never left his face though, and he just sat there grinning like the Cheshire cat as Bobby continued.

"Anyway, they were all one big family, most of them connected way back by third or fourth cousins or further back than that. But they all stemmed from two families from ancient times, and those two families were supposedly visited by an angel of God to bestow them with gifts and supposedly touching them with divine light."

The smirk fell from Dean's face and it was Sam's turn to smile. He knew how his brother hated this angels and demons mess they were in, and any mention of it just made him angry. Sam, on the other hand, was intrigued, not just because it was interesting but why Bobby had not brought it up since they found out they were dealing with the apocalypse.

"You're serious? One of the douche bag angels touched a few humans?" Dean asked before the grin was back on his face, and he was doing his best not to laugh.

"Dean…"

"Oh come on Sammy, come on! Touched by an angel? I'll lose it if you say that angel's name was Roma, Bobby!"

Bobby just rolled his eyes. "Actually, it was thought to have been Gabriel. The Bible and Koran and a few other religious documents consider him God's messenger, any time an angel appears to a human being that is. Consider Gabriel to be God's link to humanity, his interpreter of divine truth, wisdom, knowledge, and all things holy like spreading the divine word or gifts to people. These families believe it was him that came down so long ago and bestowed upon them gifts from God, like healing, foresight and knowledge of the future that no one on this planet knows but them. Not only did God supposedly give them these gifts, he charged them as the human keepers of knowledge, sworn to secrecy until his messenger appears to them again at the right time for them to come forward."

The room went quiet for a few minutes while Bobby let it sink into the boy's heads. It was a lot to handle, whether either of them believed it or not, but Sam had no problem with believing it. It made some sense to him in a crazy way, although it definitely caught him off guard. He tried to wrap his head around humans having God given gifts. The thought of Gabriel delivering the news and said gifts almost made him laugh. Sam didn't really care for the angel, much less trust him, but he wondered if they could trust him enough to ask if it was true. He really didn't want to, if he could he would rather he and Dean avoid him for now at least.

"Does this mean we need to track him down? I ask you that Bobby because the last time we did that it didn't go as well as we had planned." The younger Winchester was all business.

"I don't think that's a very good idea, especially when you told me how your last visit with him ended. But let me finish this up before you guys get going. Now there was a condition of sorts when this went down, that if they were ever in trouble and had to share their secret they could do so, and they would know because one of their gifts was knowledge. I'll just get to it now that you know all that, and how I know these people."

I was on a hunt in southern Wisconsin, in a really tiny town called Lone Rock, tracking down what I thought could be a shape shifter, but it turned out to be a demon doing some serious body hopping. I tussled with it for a bit and finally got it with some holy water I always have on me, but not before it broke my leg and cracked a number of my ribs. It left though, and I don't remember how long I laid there in pain, but I dozed off and the next thing I knew I was surrounded by a few young women who were doing their best to patch me up."

"Their names were Elaine, Susan, and Elizabeth Baker, and they saved my life. They told me they just knew they could trust me and they told me their secret, and even though I was skeptical at the time, and they knew it, I tucked that information in the back of my brain, but I've been thinking about it a lot in the last year or so we've been dealing with angels. They also told me that their family line survived being hunted down by the witch hysteria and that they knew it was demons and a few fallen angels that started the whole mess just to track them down. That demon I tussled with wanted them dead in a serious way, or so they told me. Again I had my doubts, but I had to offer them something because they took such good care of me. So I gave them my number and address and told them if they were ever in need of my help I'd do what I could."

"That's a lot to swallow Bobby." Sam said. "Why didn't you tell us this before?"

"I was sworn to secrecy, and when this angels and demons crap started happening I had a feeling that they were telling the truth. Now you boys have to go help them since I can't, and there's just a few more things you have to know before you get going, so listen up. Elaine is dead, and her daughters have no idea about Susan or Elizabeth or their cousins, because they had to split up. Samantha said they were ambushed by around 15 or 20 demons, and Elaine sacrificed herself as a diversion for the rest of them to get away. You boys need to be more than prepared for fighting them and helping that family survive and go back into hiding, because I have a gut feeling that they are important, especially with that many demons after them. You boys got that?"

Sam and Dean just nodded, but Dean stood up. "Alright, is that all we need to know? If that's the case then we should get going."

"Yeah, but here," Bobby handed him the slip of paper he had written the room number at the motel down on. "This is the motel name and the room number those girls are staying at in Richland Center, which isn't that far from Lone Rock. So get your butts in gear so you can get going. I'll make up some sandwiches for you boys and get a few road sodas out of the fridge in the garage. I don't want you boys stopping for nothing except to piss, and only when you can't hold it any longer. Haul ass boys!" Bobby left the room leaving Sam alone with his brother, and they took a minute to convey their thoughts.

"Do you get the feeling Bobby was closer to one of the sisters he mentioned than he'd like to admit?" Sam asked.

"Yeah, but he didn't tell us so let's not pry. Maybe we'll find out from one of the girls or women we're going to help. You grab the sodas and our gear, and I'll stock up the car with every single thing I can find and use against a demon." Dean started to walk away, but Sam heard one last thing come out of his brother's mouth, which made Sam very sad for what he knew Dean was going through.

"At least we know the colt won't be fucking useless this time."

Sam sighed heavily as Dean disappeared from his sight. He started about getting ready to go, but decided before he left that he would talk to Bobby and see if he had the same concerns for Dean that he had. The last thing he wanted was for Dean to be so distracted by his guilt that he let it interfere with the new job they were taking on. He was worried about his brother. The last time he was like this was after their father died. He didn't want Dean falling into that same rut, as it took him months to finally pull himself out. Sam had to be there for Dean and be ready to go through it all over. At least he had Bobby to help him this time.

When Sam had finally grabbed everything and loaded it into the car, he gave Dean an excuse as to needed to recheck the house and went inside to find Bobby. He needed to voice his concerns and he just needed someone to listen. He was hoping that together they could come up with a way to help Dean through this.


	3. Chapter 3

**Gypsy's, Tramps, and Thieves!**

**Author – **Benaboo

**Disclaimer – **Sam Dean Bobby and Castiel belong to Kripke I'm just borrowing them for this story.

**Notes – **I want to thank everyone who has reviewed this story so far! Lexi, Manda, Liss, Tens, Mag, Jess… did I get everyone? If not I'm sorry. You guys are the best and I hope you continue to read and enjoy this no matter where I take it!

**Apologies – **I want to apologize, because this chapter will have no Sam and Dean in it, but I've decided that this would be best spent on how the Baker family is faring… well, those still alive anyway. I know long paragraphs are hard to get through and I apologize for that as well… maybe I am doing this story more book style than fan fiction style, I guess I'm more comfortable that way. I'm picky with detail LOL... Anyway please enjoy, and as always, let me know what you think!

**Chapter Three: On The Move**

He could only hear the sound of his feet hitting the soft soil and the leaves of the cornstalks hitting his arms as he ran as fast as he could, carrying his baby sister in his arms. He silently gave thanks to God for no freezing rain or snow falling, which would have made his journey all the more difficult. He had no idea how long he had been running; it seemed like hours, and he was getting tired, sweat pouring down his face in uncontrollable streams and sometimes it leaked into his eyes, causing him to blink continuously. He was only ten years old after all, and though he was young and full of energy even a trek like this was wearing him down.

Jimmy Baker did not stop though, even though he was tired and Susie was very heavy in his arms. She was small for a four year old and very lightweight usually, but after a while it had still made his arms feel like lead weights. He was also weighted down with a backpack stocked with salt, a few spell books, and a little bit of food that his mom managed to hurry and pack before sending them on their way. This also slowed him down, however, Jimmy could not stop; he had to keep moving at least for a little while longer. He had to keep the demons off his trail and protect his baby sister.

Although Susie was his main concern at the moment he couldn't help but wonder if his cousins were ok. He knew his mom and his aunts were dead, he heard them screaming as he began his run into the night, bloodcurdling and loud, but he had had no time to cry or mourn the loss. He was just told to run, to somewhere safe where the demons would not be able to find him or his sister, and he took that last command from his aunts and mom very seriously. He knew why too, they never kept any secrets from him, mostly because it was the family burden and they had known he needed to know just in case. He was grateful for that; it was what kept him going.

The demons had come in a swarm, causing him and his cousins to split up not far into the woods behind their home. Sam, Cori, and Lisa went west early on, hoping to draw some of the evil things off of the rest of them. Trish and Ali had split off from him once they had hit the cornfield he was currently running through, but they planned to meet up on the other end on the road that led to Sun Prairie. The plan was to make it to Madison to try and blend in and hide until they could all regroup. Lisa would call Bobby Singer and see if he could help. Jimmy hoped so; he did have the number but was told not to call it unless the plan failed and he got really separated from Trish and Ali.

All of a sudden he burst out of the cornfield, and he stopped running for a moment as he looked around. There was a road ahead that he could see although there was a huge ditch separating him from it. He couldn't climb it with Susie in his arms; he had to wake her up. Trying not to startle her too much he gently shook her and spoke as loud as he could without attracting attention to himself.

"Susie! Hey, you need to wake up! I need your help." She stirred in his arms, and cracked her eyes open and Jimmy was glad she was such a light sleeper.

"Jimmy? Are we safe now? Did momma catch up to us?" she asked, yawning, and trying to force herself awake.

"We aren't quite safe yet, and no, momma isn't here. We have to keep going, but I can't climb with you in my arms, so I need you to walk for a little bit ok?" he gently set her down on her feet as he asked.

"Ok." Susie wobbled a bit as she got her footing, and when she finally steadied herself she looked up at her big brother. "I can run! Can I run?"

Jimmy bent down so he was face to face with her. "No not yet. Just climb ok?" She gave a quick nod and then put her hand in his as they climbed the dirt embankment up to the road. She did a good job, she only stumbled once, but he was holding her hand so she didn't fall. Once on the road they let go of each other's hand and looked around. The road was abandoned, no cars in sight either way, plus there was no sight of Trish or Ali yet. On the other side of the road was a group of pine trees though, which Jimmy knew was perfect.

He grabbed his sister's hand and walked as fast as he could across the road and in-between the first two pine trees he came to. He pulled out the salt and made a circle around Susie and himself, and then pulled out a spell book and did a quick chant from it to hide them the best he could. Susie just watched him with a fascinated look on her face, inquisitive as she was about what she was doing. Jimmy knew she was too young to understand yet, but he would tell her eventually so she could learn to protect herself.

When he was done they huddled together in their jackets for warmth and waited. Jimmy would give it an hour at the most, and if there was no sign of his cousins he would be rested enough to run again, carrying Susie if he had to.

*******

Alicia Baker swept her long brown hair out of her face and eyes and took a good look around. Trisha was right beside her and they had just emerged from the cornfield that they had been running through. She had not thought it would be a good idea that they split off from the two younger Baker children, but Jimmy had been brave and said he could do it. Alicia (Ali to her siblings) finally consented and so did Trish, but just until they hit the road and they could group up again, although it meant some back tracking to find them.

Trish turned to her just then, her face stern. "I need to catch my breath and see if I can find them." Ali just nodded in agreement, grateful for the quick chance to rest. They would have to be going soon, but not until Trish did her thing and they found their cousins. She watched as her older sister closed her eyes and breathed deeply, trying to concentrate so she could communicate with Jimmy, if he was still out there. She had to hope he was she could not bear to think of the alternative.

After a few minutes a small smile crept onto Trish's face and she opened her eyes to look at Ali. "They're ok. Up the road that way!" Pointing to her right.

"Thank God! Let's go then, we need to keep moving. Madison is still a long walk on foot, and we'll have to tale turns with Susie. Then we have to find a way to get in touch with Lisa. I hope Aunt Susan gave Jimmy her cell."

"Yeah, but we don't need it. Lisa can reach us without it." Ali just nodded again as her sister's words rang true, and they hiked up to the road and started walking in the direction of the little ones. All the women in the Baker family were gifted with a little something extra, and in the case of Trish and Lisa it was telepathy. They weren't sure how far they could stretch the distance though, since they never had to test it out. Then again, they had Samantha as a back up plan, which was a relief. That girl had a great sense of direction, so eventually they would be able to find each other.

Ali hoped so anyway. She felt they were stronger as a family. They had only had to run because they were caught off guard. They may be the keepers of knowledge and blessed with gifts from God, but that didn't mean they saw every single thing coming at them. Mostly it was just intuition about people and knowing if they could be trusted. Ambushes by demons Hell bent on destroying your family line were unpredictable.

The two sisters crossed the road, looking at the pine trees to their left. They had to find the children and keep moving it was their only hope for survival.

*******

Samantha ran as fast as she could. There was no doubt in her mind that there were no less than three demons on her trail, possibly more. 'At least the motel is just a block away.' She thought, her legs pumping as fast as she could make them go. She had to make it back to the room, it was safer there. Cori and Lisa were counting on her to make it back alive and she couldn't let them down.

Now she was half a block away, and they were getting closer. She did not dare to look behind her for fear it would scare her worse and slow her down. She cried out in her thoughts at her sister, hoping Lisa was alert to her distress. 'Lisa! Open the door! OPEN THE DOOR!" she screamed inside her head.

She ran through the parking lot of the motel and saw ahead as a door opened and a head popped out. She was just yards away, and she could just make out the shoulder length blonde hair of her telepathic sister looking in her direction in a horrified manner. Samantha knew they were even closer, mere footsteps behind her, but if they wanted her then they were in for a fight! She was scared, and when she got scared she got angry. Her mother used to say it was because of her red hair, that it meant she had a quick temper. She laughed on the inside remembering that, just as she made it a few feet from the door and a hand finally grabbed her arm.

Samantha dove through the door with all the momentum she could muster, dragging the fiend inside the room with her. Unfortunately it was head first and she slammed into the floor on her side, pain shooting through the right side of her body. She felt a hand pinned beneath her and thinking quickly reached for the knife in her pocket and stabbed at it, sending the demon howling in pain. She heard a gunshot, and then another, and a cry of surprise from one of her sisters, although she didn't know which one it was. She was too distracted.

She rolled off the hand and held the knife out in front of her. The body of the man it was possessing was holding its hand and giving her a pissed off look. Samantha just smiled and slashed out again, catching the demon asshole right in the eye. He screamed in pain and clutched at it as blood spurted out and rained down on Samantha's face. She wasn't fazed though and stuck the knife in his heart, and a glow flickered through him as he dropped dead.

Three other demons were in the room. Two were caught in devil's traps laid down in the middle of the room, and one was standing by the door deciding what to do next. There were fresh bullet holes in his chest and head, and since only Lisa was in sight, Samantha came to the conclusion that it had been Corinne (Cori for short) who had shot him. Lisa had managed to redo the salt line while he was getting shot at. Samantha took a stance and held the knife in front of her, while both sides took stock of the situation.

A few minutes went by before the demon at the door spoke, a sneer on the face yet another man that the thing had inhabited. "You ladies need to give up. We know where you are now; we'll get to you eventually."

Lisa spoke up from Samantha's left her voice icy and cold. "I have salt in my hand that says otherwise you bastard. So be nice and back off or you won't like what happens next."

"This is not over. We'll just keep coming! You'll be dead soon mark my words!" It spat out, and turned around, running back out into the night.

"Sami, you ok?"

Samantha nodded at Elaine's eldest daughter. "Yes, but that was close. It was worth it though. I got through to Bobby Singer. He's sending help our way." She turned around to face the demons standing in the traps. "Are we gonna exorcise them right away? They may have useful information."

"Agreed, we're in for a long night. Let's get started and then you can fill us in on the phone call." Samantha nodded one more time at Lisa before getting to work. They had a lot to do, and they had to find out as much as they could. Her last thought before she closed the motel room door was that she hoped Dean would make it there soon. They needed all the help they could get.


	4. Chapter 4

**Gypsy's, Tramps, and Thieves!**

**Author – **Benaboo

**Disclaimer – **Sam Dean Bobby and Castiel belong to Kripke I'm just borrowing them for this story.

**Notes – **I'm shouting out to Becky, dazing wonder, and kazamigorical on this one! Thanks you girls for joining this story and going on this journey with me, my home girls, and Sam and Dean of course =) So happy to have you along for this ride! So turn up the classic rock tunes and stretch out in the Impala and enjoy!

Also, we know Bobby lives in South Dakota, but the show has never told us where. So for the purpose of this story I'm putting him somewhere outside Sioux Falls, unless I hear otherwise! Secondly, I have not been to Richland Center in a while and I just picked a random room number for use in this story so I apologize if that detail is wrong!

**Chapter Four – Arriving in the Land of Cheese**

Sam and Dean arrived in Richland Center, Wisconsin around 10am that same morning. That was with just Dean driving as Sam had crawled into the back seat of the Impala to get his snooze on again, and with Dean pushing it to 70 to 75 mph for most of the way. Normally he and Sam would stay to the back roads, but the urgency of Bobby and Samantha's request made Dean decide to take the interstate, which made him nervous for two reasons. First he had his radar detector on to avoid any cops, but radar detectors were not always reliable, so he was very jumpy. Second was the extra traffic that clogged up the interstate unlike the less traveled back roads, which could be potentially dangerous if they ran into anything supernatural.

The drive had been uneventful though. The tunes had been on, but Sam slept through the music, which Dean was grateful for because it gave him time to think, and it kept him awake. At times he felt sleepy, but he stayed sharp as he could, hoping that later that night he would be able to finally get a little rest. He knew that might not be possible, considering what they had to face when they got there.

He had breathed a sigh of relief when he turned off of I-90 onto Hwy 14, which took him straight to their destination, although being back in Wisconsin made him nervous too. He knew that before Hendrickson died he had cleaned both his and Sam's police records by "killing" them in the helicopter explosion, but Dean didn't want to take the chance of being put back on the wanted list. It would make helping these girls a lot more difficult, that was for sure. Although there was a part of him that enjoyed the law's pursuit of him, especially since he knew he was the good guy and that they had him all wrong.

Dean smirked to himself. 'Those were fun times.' He thought to himself, reminiscing about those days, the days before he went to Hell and came back a changed man, the days before his relationship with his brother had become so strained. He actually yearned for those days, when everything was much simpler, just running from the law and hunting down whatever evil son of a bitch got in their way. 'Instead I have to deal with the angel and demon crap. Oh joy.'

He cleared his thoughts and focused his attention on the town before him. For a nice sized town it seemed pretty quaint. There were lots of trees and hilly roads and it had an air of welcoming to it, peaceful and serene. He took some time before waking Sam up to look around and scope out the town before heading to the motel the girls were staying at. Any hunter worth anything did a thorough recon of the current town they were in, just in case they needed to find something that would come in handy during the current mission they were on. It's always good to know your surroundings, is what John Winchester would say, and Dean knew this to be true. Knowing the area would help a lot.

He finally got back to the motel, and turning the music down raised his voice so his brother could hear. "Sam! Sammy! Wake up we're here!" There was no response though; just light snoozing coming from the back and Dean rolled his eyes. He found a parking spot and pulled in, turned off the car and opened his door to stretch. He breathed in the crisp, cool Wisconsin air and smiled as he basked in the fresh air. It didn't matter to him that it was a little cold out; it was a welcome change to the heat that warmed up the Impala. Dean sighed then went to the back door on the driver's side and looked in on his brother, who had his head propped up against the door with his coat and his long legs stretched out as best as he could manage. Dean knew he promised to treat Sam like an equal, but that didn't mean he couldn't have a little fun.

The oldest Winchester smirked, grabbed the door handle and opened the door really fast, causing Sam's head to fall back fast and him to jolt from his slumber. Dean just laughed as Sam looked around still half asleep, bolted upright and took in his surroundings. He saw Dean holding open the car door and gave an irritated look and threw his balled up jacket at his older brother, who almost smacked him in the face but Dean caught it easily, and laughed harder.

"You really are a jerk." Sam mumbled

"And you're a bitch Sammy boy. Get up! We're here." Dean replied throwing Sam's jacket back at him, landing in his lap.

Sam grabbed onto the jacket. "Yeah just give me a minute ok?" He put his fingers to his nose and pinched his eyes shut. "That was room number thirteen they're in right?"

"Yeah. Sucks to be them that number never worked for the people getting chased around by Jason."

Sam just rolled his eyes at his brother's bad joke and climbed out of the car, standing next to his brother. At 6'5" he had a few good inches height wise on Dean, and he rarely came across anyone taller than he was. That was one nice thing for Sam, that he could joke his brother might be older, but he was taller, and it made him laugh so hard when he mentioned that fact to Dean.

Sam looked around the parking lot. "It doesn't seem like any demons are around. That makes me nervous."

Dean nodded. "I know. You can bet they're here though." The two brothers walked around to the trunk, Sam keeping watch while Dean opened the hidden weapon cache. He handed Sam a shotgun and the demon knife, while he picked up 44mm and the Colt. Dean's hesitation holding it did not go unnoticed by Sam, but he chose not to say anything, it wasn't the right time. Dean eventually tucked it into his jacket, closed the cache and the trunk door, and turned to look at his brother.

"Time to go to work." That being said, Dean led the way, Sam right behind him, both looking over their shoulders as they made their way to the door of the room given to them by Bobby early that morning. They made it up to the motel door but Dean stopped abruptly, causing Sam to put his hand on his brother's shoulder as not to run into him. He stepped to the side and saw the reason. Someone had laid a salt line down, but it was scuffed and broken, meaning that either someone did it on purpose, or something had gone terribly wrong to make it so. The windows were drawn shut tightly, so the boys couldn't see inside, which could mean the girls were either hiding or something bad had happened since Samantha had called them.

"This could be bad." Sam said; worry poured out of his voice.

"It could be worst than bad. If the demons got in there, no telling what they did to those girls." Dean gritted his teeth and gave a hard look at his brother.

Sam gave a short nod. "We're prepared Dean. Let's knock first in case they are ok, no sense to pick the lock or break down the door if it doesn't have to come to that." He lifted his hand and gave a few short knocks on the door. They waited a minute, but got no response, so Sam tried again, knocking a little harder the second time around. Again there was no response, and Dean, being very impatient, grabbed his tools out and bent down to pick the lock. He didn't even get to insert the pick, before they heard a strong, pissed off, female voice from behind the door.

"We don't need any maid service, I thought I made that clear when we checked in?" she asked, obviously very irritated.

Dean straightened, and although surprised someone was inside, responded back to her. "We're not maid service. Bobby Singer sent us to help Samantha. Is she here?"

There was silence, but out of the corner of his eye Dean saw the curtain move slightly then close again. A few seconds later he heard the familiar sound of a bolt lock unlocking, and then the door opened just wide enough for someone to peep out. All he could make out were blue eyes and blonde hair, but he could tell she was checking them out. 'Sizing us up to see if we're possessed by demons no doubt.' He thought to himself.

She spoke again, this time putting a little more authority in her voice. "Back up from the door a few feet nice and slow." Sam and Dean did as she asked, and Dean couldn't help but give a short smirk and look to his brother a she closed the door and unchained the lock, but the smirk was wiped off his face when he turned his head back to the door and holy water hit his face.

Sam held in a laugh as Dean spoke to her again the annoyance clear in his voice. "We're not demons; we're just here to help."

The girl in the door looked at them for a few seconds then stepped back and opened the door. There was an intact salt line behind it and Sam noticed that she held a shotgun in her right hand. She was tall, about 5'10", looked to be no older than 20 years old, and had piercing blue eyes and shoulder length blonde hair. Even though she seemed so young, there was an aura about her that made her seem so much older and wiser to Sam.

"Come on in then if you can step over the salt, and don't make any sudden movements. You may not be demons but that doesn't mean jack and squat to me right now."

Dean just gave her a blank stare and stepped across the line into the room, Sam right behind him, both being careful not to do anything that would make her shoot them. Without taking her eyes off of them she closed and locked the door again, being very careful not to break the salt line as she did so. She didn't raise the gun at them but, spoke again with the same authority in her voice.

"Okay, your not demons, but who are you?" she asked.

Dean pointed to himself and then Sam. "My name's Dean and this is my brother Sam, and like I said before, Bobby sent us to help you. I have my cell I can call him if you want me to."

Before the girl could speak again the bathroom door burst open, causing the brothers to look in that direction although the blonde girl kept her eyes on them. Another girl emerged, much younger, with long red hair and green eyes, a few inches shorter than the gun toting blonde. She stopped for a moment when she saw Sam and Dean.

"Lisa, who are these guys?" she asked, looking back and forth between them with a mixture of bewilderment and curiosity, and Dean recognized her voice immediately as Samantha from their earlier phone conversation.

Dean spoke up, hoping she would recognize his as well. "Hey Samantha is it? I'm Dean, we spoke earlier on the phone remember?"

Samantha gave him a huge smile and ran straight at him, tackling him in a huge hug which knocked him off his feet a little. Dean was quite surprised at first, but he finally put his arms around her and hugged her back quickly then pulled her back to look at her.

"It's ok Lisa, its Dean I recognize his voice from this morning!" She turned to look at her sister. "You can put the shotgun down now."

"Are you sure Sami? You only spoke to him the one time." Samantha gave her a glare and Lisa sighed. "Sorry kid, I didn't mean to second guess ya." Samantha rolled her eyes then turned back to Dean, a big smile on her face.

"I'm so glad you're here! We've had some problems, I actually barely just made it back here after I called."

Dean put on his serious face when he noticed the bruises up and down her arm and a few deep cuts. "Whoa kiddo, are you ok? Those are some serious bruises and cuts! They should be taken care of…"

Samantha nodded. "I know, I was about to do that when I heard your voices, and well, I just had to see what was going on."

Lisa interrupted. "Well you need to get cleaned up, Cori needs to wake up, and we need to figure out how to get out of here, which won't be easy, not if that bastard was telling the truth."

Sam and Dean only had a few seconds to give her a puzzled look, when at that moment the window exploded sending shards of glass flying in every direction. Dean grabbed Samantha and dove for cover, using his body as a shield with her tucked snugly in his arms as he yelled out.

"Everyone take cover!"


	5. Chapter 5

**Author – **Benaboo

**Notes – **This chapter goes out to everyone, especially Manda who was irritated I left the last chapter in such a cliffhanger. Also, I'm gonna jump around a bit in this chapter, so just hang in there… I might know how I want to end this story, but its getting there that's the difficult part. Enjoy!

**Chapter Five: Pinned Down and Helpless**

The window had shattered, sending glass and everyone in the room flying everywhere. Sam had no time to look around, just duck for cover. He had seen Dean grab Samantha and he tried to do the same for Lisa, but there had been no time. The three of them had been closest to the windows, and there was no telling in those few moments whether they were ok or not, especially since they seem to fly by so fast. He hoped so, but he wouldn't be able to tell until the dust, or in this case glass, settled and he could take stock of the situation.

He hit the ground and rolled to his right, trying to come up as close to the door as possible. It wasn't pleasant, as shards of glass cut into him, a few pieces embedding in his skin, and Sam grimaced. He closed his eyes for a second before carefully open them and look around.

His back was pretty much to the door, so he could see the full view of the room in front of him. Dean was to his left holding Samantha tightly in his arms, and they looked to be ok, although the young girl looked very rattled. Dean was looking up over his shoulder at the busted window they were under trying to see anything he could, which Sam assumed was damn little. 'At least they're alright' the younger Winchester thought, and turned hi head in to look at Lisa.

The pretty blond had been closer to the left window than any of them had, and as Sam saw her now he worried. He had seen the right window explode but had not noticed the same thing happening on the other side. She lay under it, not able to make it in time, in a pool of blood and he feared the worst. She was not moving and Sam saw a chunk of broken window sticking out of her head at an odd angle. He swore to himself and called out to Dean, hoping he could do so without frightening the younger girl too much.

"Dean, you ok?"

"Yeah, I'm ok. Hey Sami, are you ok honey?" his brother asked.

"I seem to be. You know, only Lisa can call me Sami." The brothers smiled a little at that statement, although their situation was grim. She was irritated for a moment before continuing. "Sam, I can't see my sister, is she ok?"

Sam didn't know how to answer that, but since he didn't know until he could get to her he decided to tell her the truth. "I'm not sure, I can't be until I can make it over there and check her over." There were a few moments of silence and Sam continued. "Dean, any way of knowing how safe it is for me to crawl over there?"

Dean shook his head. "Not yet, but if you give me a minute I'll brave a quick look out the window. Hey Sam, how did they break the windows? I didn't see anything big enough to crash through them, and I can't see around the room."

Sam checked the room again but there was nothing. "Dude, I don't know, I don't see anything either. I can't see behind the beds…" just then he was interrupted when the door to the adjoining room burst open, and another girl about Lisa's height emerged, with the same blue eyes and blond hair, only longer than the girl currently on the floor.

She didn't have time to speak when Sam yelled at her, out of worry. "Get down, NOW!!!" It took her a second before what he said registered in her brain, and she ducked just in time to avoid something on fire whizzing past her head.

Sam cursed out loud. "Dammit!"

Samantha spoke up at the same time. "Cori! Fire! Put it out!" The girl, Cori, looked behind her at the rag that was on fire and trying to spread to other parts of the room. Thinking quickly she grabbed a comforter from the nearest bed and started patting out the flames, which took a few minutes but eventually went out. She tossed the comforter to the side, sat up with her back against the furthest wall and sighed as she blew a stray lock of her blond hair out of her face. She then looked around her wondering what had happened. She saw Lisa on the floor, a horrified look replacing her shock and she started to crawl towards her, but Sam stopped her.

"Cori!" The girl looked up at him with tears in her eyes. "Cori, listen, I'm gonna check on your sister, ok, but you need to stay put. We can't let you be hurt too if they see you crawling; any movement at all that they might see could cause them to attack again alright?" Her tears were falling fast, her face red with emotion, anger, which Sam knew only too well, and he realized just how young she was. 'God, she's just a teenager. Poor girl, she doesn't deserve this, none of them do.' He felt his own anger rising up in his body, but he kept control as the girl sat back down and scooped her knees to herself, crying and nodding her head.

He turned to Dean. "Are you ready to take that look out the window?"

"As ready as I'm ever gonna be." His older brother addressed the girl in his arms. "Ok kiddo, I'm just gonna set you beside me, under this window, so keep still with your head down alright?" She nodded and Dean did just what he said he would then turned back to the window. Very carefully he lifted his head until just his eyes could look out and scan the parking lot for a few seconds. His eyes widened and he ducked back down and put his back against the wall, and gave a small, sarcastic laugh.

"That bad, huh?" Sam asked.

Dean blew out a breath. "You remember Monument, Colorado a couple years back Sammy?"

Sam flinched. "Yeah, like it was yesterday. So it's the same thing?"

Dean shook his head. "Worse."

It was Sam's turn to let out a breath. "Damn. How many of them are out there Dean?"

"If I had to take a guess I'd say 'round fifty."

That was not what Sam Winchester had wanted to hear, and he closed his eyes before he spoke again. "Is it safe enough for me to check on Lisa?"

"Yeah, just keep your head down while you crawl. None of them seem to be up near the windows yet. Don't quote me on that though, I only got a look at them gathered in the lot, there could be more in hiding." Sam nodded and very carefully turned towards the eldest Baker daughter.

He could still see Cori crying and shaking out of the corner of his eye, but there was nothing he could do about that, not yet anyway. His first priority had to be Lisa, if she was still alive that is. So he got down low, crawling on his belly like his ex-marine father had shown him to, carefully making his way to the girl still lying motionless, face down on the motel room floor. It took him a minute but he finally made it to her and drawing a breath gently turned her over.

Lisa's face was covered in blood, probably from the chunk of glass stuck in her head. Sam was pretty sure if he wiped the blood away her face would be covered in cuts as well, although he had no idea how deep they were at first glance. He put his fingers to her neck and her wrist checking for a pulse; there was nothing, so he began CPR as best he could. No one said a word as he went to work on her, except he could hear Cori sniffling from across the room. He spent more minutes than he could count trying to revive her, but with no such luck.

Lisa Baker was dead.

*****************

Approximately 50 miles away on the outskirts of Madison, WI, in a no name, crappy motel, 4 year old Susie Baker woke up from her nap and those around her with a high pitched screaming wail, big fat tears running down her face as she did so. Her brother Jimmy tried to calm her down, along with their older cousins Alicia and Trish, but it was no use. They couldn't calm her down, and she cried for hours refusing to talk to anyone and only letting Jimmy anywhere near her. Trish was very concerned. She had tried talking to her baby cousin using her telepathy, but Susie shut down, and wouldn't let her in.

They only arrived at the state capital a few hours prior, and they crashed immediately, tired from the trip it took them to get there. They had walked a long way, and were very tired, so they had not taken the time to check in with Bobby Singer yet to see if he heard from Lisa. With Susie being like she was the oldest Baker woman decided it was time to do so now, and she used her aunt's cell phone from Jimmy's pocket and speed dialed the South Dakota number. She didn't have to wait long; the phone only rang twice before it was picked up.

"Hello?" An older man's voice came over the line, a little gruff sounding, but lined with worry and anxiety.

"Hi, is Bobby singer there?" Trish asked carefully.

"That depends on who's asking." Trish almost laughed. 'Well isn't he a ball of sunshine.' She thought to herself, amused at his tone.

"Well, if he's there can you tell him this is Trisha Baker, and that it's very important I speak to him?"

It was silent on the other end for a moment before the man finally spoke. "Trisha as in brown haired little tomboy Trisha? Is that you?"

She smiled, although he couldn't see it. "That's me, although I grew out of that phase a long time ago."

"Well, how are you doing kid? I haven't seen you in years, last I knew you were climbing trees and refusing to wear your hair anyway but in pigtails!"

This time Trish laughed. "You must be Bobby then. Yeah it's been a long time. I just wanted to check in with you, I would have earlier, but when we got to our motel we just crashed, we were so tired. Have you heard from Lisa yet? We had to part ways early on, and I'm worried, she should have contacted me by now."

"Not Lisa, but Samantha called me really early this morning. I sent my two best hunters to protect them, but I haven't heard a word since. I figured I'd give them another hour or so before I called to check and see if they got to them."

Trish took a deep breath. "Ok, well was Sami ok? Did she say anything to you about their situation?"

"Just that they were pinned down by demons but she had no idea how many. Would you like me to call my boys and check on them?" Bobby asked her calmly.

"I would like that very much. So call me back whether you get through to them or not, I'll keep the cell on until I hear from you."

"Alright darlin', you just take care of yourself and yours and I'll see what I can do."

"Thank you Bobby."

"Don't mention it." That was the old hunters reply before he hung up the phone and Trish waited eagerly for him to get back to her.

Minutes turned into an hour, and then before she knew it, three hours had passed, going on four. Trish started to worry, first for her family, and then for Bobby, that maybe demons had honed in on their call and gotten to him somehow. However, just as the fourth hour had passed since she talked to him, the phone rang. She answered it immediately, recognizing the number as Bobby Singer's name came up on the phone.

"Bobby?" She breathed with relief.

"Yeah kid, it's me. You sound relieved, I'm sorry it took so long to get back to ya, I just had to be thorough. I didn't mean to worry ya."

"No worries, I'm just glad you got back to me. So what's the word, are they ok?" she asked, praying for what she wanted to hear.

"I couldn't reach Sam or Dean. I tried several times, but I don't know if their cells are turned off or they left them somewhere. They don't normally turn them off so I would be lying if that didn't worry me. Something tells me that they have a serious situation on their hands, but what I couldn't tell ya." The old man said with hesitation, and Trish knew she wasn't the only one that was worried.

"Crap! I have no idea what to do. Susie finally calmed down, but she won't speak to me, only Jimmy, and I can't reach Lisa telepathically, it feels like something is broken in her mind. I'm not sure what to do next, stay put or keep moving." She felt like she could cry, but she stayed strong, doing her best to hold onto her inner resolve.

"Well I might have a solution, or at least a temporary one. Tell me what's going on and we'll deal with it, alright girl?"

Bobby Singer was the one person Trish knew she could trust, just as her mother and aunts had so long ago. So Trish told him everything, from the time they split from Lisa's group to present, not leaving out a single detail. Bobby listened while she told him about the corn field, the trip to Madison, and most recently Susie's strange behavior. When the oldest Baker girl finished, Bobby was silent for a few moments before he spoke.

"Alright kid, here's the deal. I'm going to send someone to help you out, a friend of sorts that we know. That's another reason it took me so long to get back to you, I had to get a hold of him and fill him in best as I could. He's sympathetic to your family; he knows of you and wants to do anything he can to help."

Trish breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you Bobby. I'm sure my mother would be disapproving though, telling anyone but you what's going on. I can just see her having a conniption."

Bobby chuckled. "Well kid, don't worry about it. The three people I've told besides me are completely trustworthy, they'll help you out. You know, I'm in a wheelchair, I can't get around like I used to, but I'm going to make my way up there anyway and bring along a few things that might help. What's important now is that you just stay put and wait on Castiel to get there and help you. Then when I get up there, we'll see if we can find your family and those two idjiots named Winchester, ok?"

Trish nodded. "Ok, sounds like a plan. When will your friend get here?"

"I just need your motel and room number and he'll be there shortly." Trish gave the info, and then Bobby continued. "Alright, he'll be there in a few minutes, just hang tight."

Trish was confused. "A few minutes? Is he in the area?"

"You could say that. Take care and I'll see you soon."

"Alright, see you later, and thanks again." They hung up the phone again, and Trish sat down, hoping to relax for a few minutes, but that wasn't to be as there was a knock on the door almost immediately. She sighed and went to the door looking out the peephole, and saw a man a few inches taller than her with brown hair and blue eyes, wearing a trench coat. She opened the door, careful not to mess the salt line laid down when they first got there and was going to say something but he spoke up first.

"I'm Castiel. Bobby sent me to help you."

*****************

Sam and Dean Winchester had been in some seriously tight spots before, that was just a fact, and anyone who knew them also knew it to be the truth. There was no way for them to avoid it, doing what they did, hunting the monsters and evil that roamed freely over the world, although they stuck to the ones that were in their American back yard. Gordon Walker once told them they were known for being good in tight spots, amongst other hunters, and that they were.

Dean was starting to think that maybe they had gotten into this one though, and there would be no way out of it. He wasn't concerned with Sam and himself dying as much, because he knew the damned angels would just bring them back to life. No, the eldest Winchester had more concern for these girls, because getting them out of this room alive and somewhere safe was the most important thing right now.

He would have called Bobby or Cas, and Sam would have too, but the demons were knocking out their cell phone reception, so there was no way around it. They were pinned down, with no real way out, a dead body in the room, a catatonic teenage girl, and demons throwing stuff on fire through the open windows. 'At least they can't get past the salt lines' he thought to himself, although it didn't lessen his worry any. On top of all that, it was almost dark outside, hours ticking by, but it could be useful at some point.

At least he had Sam, who was holding it together pretty well, and Samantha, she was a trooper. Her sister was dead, but she bravely put on a calm face, even though Dean knew it pained her to have to know that, not to mention Cori on the other side of the room. None of them had moved from their spots in the past couple of hours, except Sam a couple times to put out burning rags wrapped around stones. They were trying to smoke them out, and Dean knew that was just the beginning, they had to think of something to get out of there and fast.

"Well, we've been sitting here for a couple of hours now Sam. We have to think of a way out of here."

"I know. I'm beginning to feel like we're in the supernatural version of the Alamo, only they had better numbers than we do, and look what happened to them…"

Dean raised an eyebrow. "And who are you, Davey Crockett?"

Sam just grinned at his brother. "Anyway, you know, maybe I should just step outside? They won't hurt me; I'm Lucifer's vessel after all..."

Dean shook his head. "Absolutely not, they'll just end up taking you to him!"

"Well, what else did you have in mind Dean, because I don't see that we have many options?" Sam was frustrated, and Dean couldn't blame him.

"I don't know I'm trying to think! These damn demons got me all crazy!"

Samantha spoke up. "Dean, I need to get to Cori. Or someone has to. I'm worried about her, we can't do anything until we get her to snap out of it, and I'm afraid that it has to be me, I'm not sure you or Sam could get through to her." She said this, the sadness evident in her voice and making it crack a little.

Dean sighed. "I know sweetheart, I know. I'm not good with that sort of thing, but Sam is closer, so we'll let him try getting though to her first. If that doesn't work, we'll get you over to her somehow. I just don't want to risk you unnecessarily, I'm here to protect you not get you killed."

Samantha nodded. "Okay, but if Sam can't snap her out of it, I'm going over there. She's my sister; I'm not going to just stand by any longer than I have to!"

The longer he knew this little red headed girl, the more Dean came to like her. He knew exactly how she felt, he'd do anything for Sam, and that endeared her to him. She was fearless, protective, and downright ornery; she was absolutely adorable.

"No argument there Hun. Sam you heard the little lady, time to belly over to Cori and do what you can. Pull out the puppy dog eyes that might work…" Sam gave him an irritated glace and Dean shrugged his shoulders as if to say 'What?' and Sam just shook his head and looked at Cori, his face softening with pity for the girl.

Samantha spoke to Sam as quietly as she could. "Sam, one thing you have to know is Cori doesn't talk, only to me on occasion and our mother."

Sam gave the young girl a smile. "Thanks for the heads up kiddo; that will help me a lot."

Doing his best not to get anymore glass embedded in his skin, Sam started to crawl, belly low to the ground military style like his father taught him, very slowly and deliberately to where Cori sat, her face tear stained and her eyes comatose with shock. He had no idea how he was going to pull her out of the shock, but he was gonna do all he could and then some. It felt like a lifetime, but he finally made it over to her, and although he was afraid to touch her, he wanted to. He wanted to comfort her and hold her.

Sam sat up next to her, keeping an eye on the window in his peripheral vision and spoke to her softly. "Hey Cori, my name is Sam." There was no response. "Listen, I know your scared and upset, I do; I know how you feel, I saw someone I loved die once, and it's not something you get over easily." Cori just sniffled and buried her head in her knees. "I know you feel like you just don't care about what's going on around you right now, but Lisa wouldn't want you to do that would she? She would want you to fight, to try and get out of here and get somewhere safe, right?"

Something he said made Cori lift her head and turn slightly to look at him. Her face was wet from her tears, and her eyes red and puffy from the hours of crying she had just endured. Dean watched on in fascination. He never knew how Sam could do it, be so soft and gentle with someone so frail, angry or anything. The younger Winchester's entire demeanor just screamed 'shoulder to cry on' and 'someone who will listen'. Dean couldn't do that, and didn't want to, but he sure admired his little brother for it. At times it just didn't make any sense that Sam could be Lucifer's vessel, but that was neither here nor there, as Dean had already made up his mind to not let that happen no matter the cost.

Sam gave a sympathetic smile at Cori. He didn't want to frighten her, so he did his best to continue to snap her out of it. "I know this may sound strange, and you don't know me, but do you need me to do anything? I can give you a hug, or I can help you to Samantha, or we can just sit here for a bit and talk?" Sam smiled sweetly at her. "Or you know, I could just talk, but I'm sure you don't want to hear my boring monologue all night, right?"

For the first time since he had met her, the young blond teenager cracked a smile. It was only for a brief moment, and then she got serious again and to Sam's surprise threw herself into him, hugging and crying some more. Sam put his arms around her and held her while she did so, shooting Dean a look of mixed concern and relief. Dean just nodded, like he knew Sam could reach her and turned his attention back to Samantha.

"Well, we need to figure a way out of here sweetheart." He lowered his voice so only she could hear. "I'm sorry we won't be able to take Lisa with us, if we could we would, she deserves much better. I'm sorry."

"There's nothing to be sorry about Dean, I understand. It would slow us down, and we can't afford that right now. My biggest concern right now is getting Cori out of here and finding our cousins. I mean, I have my knife but that won't help us if the demons swarm us." The girl sighed.

Dean gave her a puzzled look. "What knife?"

Samantha reached behind her back and drew out a wicked looking Bowie knife. "This one, it's magically imbued, it kills demons."

Dean chuckled. "Sam and I have a knife like that one too, and a Colt Revolver that also does the same thing."

"Well that's nice to hear, we'll have to talk more about that later. Still doesn't change the fact we're pinned down. We have to make a break for it at some point, though I'm thinking your car is parked out front?"

"Yeah, I should've been smarter about that and parked it closer to the door." Dean saw Sam wave at him and he turned his head to look at him.

"Actually," Sam said. "I might have another idea besides me walking out there, but it may be a little risky."

Dean huffed. "Hell Sammy, at this point I'm willing to hear just about anything anyone has to say, so spit it out!"

Sam nodded. He hoped his plan worked, but it was a risk. "I'm thinking about glamour."

Dean chuckled. "Sammy, I always knew you had an inner drag queen inside you waiting to burst out! I guess I have to start calling you SamPaul now!"

Sam rolled his eyes and gave Dean a dirty look. "Not glamour like that you dumb ass! A glamour spell, that makes you seem like someone or something you're not. I didn't grab the few spell books Bobby loaned me out of the Impala, but there was a spell in one of them that did that. If I can remember the spell, or create our own…"

His brother snapped his fingers. "We can get to the Impala, or at least one of us can, and we could get out calling Bobby; or driving it as close to the motel as we can and make a break for it!"

"Exactly." Was Sam's response.

"Ok little brother, how do you propose we do this?"

Sam sighed. He didn't know how exactly, but he was going to do his best to figure it out.


	6. Chapter 6

**Gypsy's, Tramps, and Thieves!**

**Author – **Benaboo

**Disclaimer – **Sam Dean Bobby and Castiel belong to Kripke I'm just borrowing them for this story.

**Notes – **Sorry it's been a while for a chapter to be up, I have two stories going on right now, not to mention a few one shots working in my head! Also, the Olympics are on, so that's taking up my time… Go Evan Lysacek!!!! YAY!!!

Anyway, several people are getting antsy, so I hope this fixes some of that… I'm hoping to get two or three chapters of this up before I got to Wisconsin in March for two weeks, but we shall see… Yes I will be gone from March 19th to April 2nd, and I won't be posting anything in t hat time period, although I'll be working on Hell Mouths and Whiskey, my Buffy/SPN crossover during that time period.

I apologize for the shortness of this chapter, I figured that it was best I went back to what I did with the first two chapters, and bring what I could of Castiel to the page.

So here's the next chapter, Enjoy!!!

**Chapter Six: Angel or Human?**

Castiel looked around at the human beings in the room that Bobby had sent him to protect. They seemed like the typical humans he had observed in the past year and a half, although he knew they weren't. Bobby had also filled him in on their story and Castiel had not believed him at first, or more correctly, had not believed what he was hearing. He knew there were a couple family lines that survived since being touched by God's grace thousands of years ago, but he had never laid eyes on any of them, and he had never been charged with protecting any of them before, only a few female angels had. That alone made Cas nervous.

Cas (which was what Sam and Dean had shortened his name to, although he had no idea why since he didn't grasp the concept of nick names) knew something had to be wrong if these women were in danger. He was furious at first, since their angel protection didn't seem to be doing their job, but after Bobby talked some sense to him, Cas realized that something might be terribly wrong. Their guardian angels could very well be dead, lost in the fight to save them from the demonic forces that wanted to stamp out as much good as they could before Lucifer gained true power. What really made him angry is why Zachariah was letting this happen.

The fallen angel knew that Zachariah and most of the other angels brought on the apocalypse and that they wanted peace on earth, but these women were an integral part of that. God had commanded long ago that they be looked after and protected at all costs, they were gifted with a touch of angelic power and insight, and they would be the humans to help in the end times, to pull humanity together and triumph over evil in a certain battle, although the angels had no idea which one. God kept that part to himself; he only told the angels what they needed to know, as they needed to know it. That was fine with Cas, he had the utmost respect for his father, and he tried to be a good son, tried to do what he asked and live by example, something he felt the other angels weren't doing.

Sometimes he wanted to scream at the other angels, if they would speak to him that is. They said he was a disgrace, nothing worthy of heaven anymore, and definitely not worthy of paradise. His powers were being drained away, most likely by the heavenly host, which consisted of the four arch angels Michael, Raphael, Gabriel, and Zachariah, although after the speech and a singular 'smack down' as the brother's called it, he wasn't sure about Gabriel being a part of it. From what the Winchesters had told him, Gabriel was a wild card, and he could not agree with them more. They all hoped he'd come to his senses and help them out, but they just didn't know right now.

In the meantime they had to deal with what was happening right now, although Cas had every intention of trying to find out where the angels for these humans were, or what had happened to them. He set that aside though, as his eyes, ears, and senses were vigilant, keeping them open for any demonic or angelic presence. It was one of the few powers he still had available, his angelic senses, and he wanted to do his best to utilize it before it eventually faded away. He couldn't heal, he couldn't exorcise demons anymore, and he had a hard time, feeling like he was losing all of who he used to be. He continued to persevere though, because he knew God was out there, and that He would make everything right again.

As he stood there keeping watch, he wasn't unaware of the fact that the four children in this room kept looking at him from time to time, especially the tiny ones. The little boy and girl, Jimmy and Susie, kept stealing glances and staring at him, but when Cas looked their way they'd turn their heads abruptly, as if they weren't looking at him at all. They were curious little creatures, and the angel was very intrigued by why they would do this, instead of saying what they had to say to him. He turned to face them finally, addressing them as cordially as he could without trying to scare them.

"Excuse me little ones, but why do you keep doing that?" Castiel asked them, in an innocent childlike manner that he seemed to possess as much as they did.

The boy, Jimmy, looked at him nervously. "I'm sorry, but what are we doing?"

Castiel cocked his head to the side and answered matter-of-factly. "You keep looking at me, but when I look at you and your sister, you look away. Have I done something wrong?"

Jimmy sighed, and his face turned a light shade of red, embarrassed that he had been caught staring so much. "I'm sorry about that; I know it's impolite to stare. I guess its just awe and curiosity. We've never met an angel before."

The little boy's words made sense to Cas now, and he understood where the kid was coming from. "I know what you mean child; its not everyday humans meet angels. My presence must be very overwhelming to one as young as you."

The young boy looked at him, kinda of stunned for a moment, but smiled as he realized how much of a kid the angel seemed to be as well. "Yeah, it's true we don't always get to talk to an angel, so I apologize for staring really. It's not just you though, it's other things, so I've just been trying to occupy my mind with other things and you happen to be a distraction for me."

"It is alright little one; I am used to humans not knowing what to make of me. If you need to stare at me and give weird looks my way to help adjust to my presence, please feel free to continue to do so." The angel said calmly and bluntly. The boy named Jimmy Baker just nodded, but he looked away instead, focusing his attention on his little sister. So Castiel turned as well, still keeping an eye out for anything unusual, and waiting for Bobby to arrive.

Bobby Singer was a human being that Castiel just couldn't quite figure out. On the one hand, he sometimes seemed really angry with him, whether he had a reason to or not, but other times he would be very nice and respectful. Dean Winchester had said that Bobby was just set in his ways and that's who the old man was, but Cas couldn't wrap his mind around it. He seemed really angry with him, and the angel knew it was mostly because he could not heal his legs, but also just because he was an angel. He couldn't blame Bobby, since he knew his brothers were completely out of line bringing on the apocalypse without God's permission. He harbored resentment against his brother's as well, because he knew deep down his God would never permit the apocalypse to happen without his say so.

He had a lot of doubts though, and even more worries. At times it was so much for even him to handle. He couldn't understand why he was alive again. His brothers said Lucifer raised him, but he refused to believe it. Arch angels could raise humans and lesser angels, this much was true, but they could not raise them without the right amount of angelic power, and Lucifer did not have that kind of power, not yet anyway. He would only be powerful enough to do that if Sam Winchester said yes, and the young man was adamant that he would say no. No, it was his father that raised him, he was sure of it. Zachariah had been so frightened at the possibility that God was around, and Castiel knew he should be, because He would be very angry at the angels for their part in starting all of this mess. Dean had said something about God "spanking" the angels a few weeks ago, and everyone had laughed, including the Harvelle women who had still been alive. He had not laughed with them though, because the renegade angel had known that a "spanking" from God, as Dean had put it, would not be pleasant at all, and he had winced at the suggestion of it.

He was also worried that maybe the angels were right, that maybe God would be displeased with him, and that he chose to help humanity fight the apocalypse instead of seeing the entire civilization wiped out from a Michael and Lucifer confrontation and the Four Horsemen run amok. Cas didn't like the thought of disappointing God, but he always pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind, choosing to be hopeful instead of mournful for any future consequences his disobedience may have triggered. There was nothing he could do about it now anyway, short of turning Dean over to Michael and or Sam over to Lucifer, and he refused to do one or either of those things. He was on Team Winchester as Sam had so delicately put it, while Dean chastised him for liking the twilight, which was another thing he couldn't figure out. When Cas had asked Dean why Sam should not like that time of the day, he just rolled his eyes and told him to forget it, so the angel did, not wanting to make a big deal out of it.

He had really come to like and respect the Winchesters, although it had been touch and go with Sam for a while, which had really been his superiors opinion of the boy, not Castiel's. He had just been dumb enough to take everything they said as God's word, which he now believed to be false. Dean had made him see though, that humanity was worth saving, and that his brother was just a tool in the angels and demons plans to try and take over the earth, and Sam was not so bad once he had got to know him. Sam was just a normal human being, with the exception of being a hunter, and he had no desire to have anything but a normal life, even though Cas knew he had given up on that a few years prior. Sam felt he was cursed, and it hung heavy in his mind. Cas only knew this because he still had his mind reading ability and from time to time it got so that his curiosity had to be sated so he'd read both men's minds. The younger Winchester was also afraid he'd say yes, that Lucifer would find a way to convince him to, although he was determined to say no, no matter the cost. That alone made Castiel soften to him, knowing that he didn't want to do it and that he had a healthy amount of fear, because fear could be a strong motivator in overcoming obstacles, as he had seen it before.

Dean though, was hard to pin down in his thoughts. From time to time the angel was able to get fleeting inappropriate expletives about the angels and demons and the situation they were currently in, but nothing really solid. Whenever he read Dean's mind he was usually bombarded with thoughts of sex, food and music, and lots of other trifling things that he couldn't sort out that seemed to be typical of Dean's attitude and behavior. While Sam's mind was just thoughts for the most part, with an occasional picture of what he was thinking, Dean only seemed to think in pictures, some good, some bad, and some that Castiel would rather not see again that consisted of Dean in various mental images with varying women, although there were a few of them that tended to turn up more than others. It made the angel wonder if Dean wanted to settle down with one of them, start a family and give up hunting. He knew from the pictures that Jo was one of these women, along with another blonde and a brunette, but he didn't know names, since the Winchester kept those a well guarded secret.

Before Castiel could reflect further on the boys, Bobby, or anything else that was on his mind, he felt the front of his pocket vibrate. Pulling out the new cell phone Dean had got for him, he hoped that is was him or Sam, telling them they were alright, but the caller id recognized it as Bobby. Sighing in frustration, he flipped open the phone and hit the green button, putting it to his ear to speak.

"Bobby, I take it you haven't heard from them yet? I am starting to get very worried."

"You and me both Idjiot; how are the kids doing?" came the response.

"They seem to be fine for now, and I have not detected any angelic or demonic presence as of yet. We have to figure something out soon, because it's most likely that Sam and Dean are pinned down by demons at this point, and a lot of them I think, since there seems to be a lack of guardians on these girls."

"I'm working on it, but I'm not coming up with many ideas. You can't just pop in there and teleport them out? Or is your angel juice about gone on that?" The old man said with a grumble.

Cas sighed. "No I have angel juice to teleport, but all at once could be a problem. It's hard enough doing it for just one or two people now, and I need to save my energy. I'll do it if you think its best, but I would like to see if we can think of some way to do it without exhausting what power I still have left."

"Alright, we'll use you as a last resort then, but I'm telling you now kid, I don't see any way to get out of this."

"I know Bobby, but when you get here I'll pop in on them and see what's up. Are you about to arrive?"

"Yeah, I'm about ten or fifteen minutes out from you now. Do they need any food? I can pick something up."

"Just a moment." Cas called out to the kids and girls in the room. "Do any of you require nourishment of any kind? Bobby has offered to pick something up if you do."

The oldest, Trisha, spoke up then, nodding her head. "Yes Castiel that would be great. Could you have him pick up a few pizzas; that should tide us over for a few hours. Make sure all of them have extra cheese, some with pepperoni and some with sausage, and nothing else."

The angel gave her a curt nod and proceeded to give Bobby the order. They talked for a few seconds to wrap up loose ends and hung up, Cas returning the phone to his pocket, but his mind not returning to his thoughts. Instead he turned to Trish and Ali, determined to come up with some sort of plan to help Sam, Dean and their family.

"I don't mean to startle you, but it's a good bet that your cousins and my friends are not in a good situation. Some of them may even be dead."

Ali nodded. "Yeah, we've taken that into consideration. The demons on our tail last night obviously lost us, but that should give us an advantage, although a small one."

"I agree, but we don't have much time to figure something out, I think Castiel is right, we've run out of time, or we don't have much left." Trish added, a worried frown clouding her dark features. She looked at Jimmy as she got up and walked to where his backpack lay on the floor. "Jimmy, I'm gonna see what books Aunt Susan managed to pack us, and look for a way to help out, if we can." He just nodded but kept his attention on Susie, who had since calmed down but was still not talking to anyone after her fit earlier. He had tried to read her mind, but it was too jumbled up to figure out what made her so upset, so he would try later.

Now was the time to get down to work. They spread out the books and began reading while they waited on Bobby. Hopefully they could find something to help their friends and family, they just had to know what they were looking for.


	7. Chapter 7

**Gypsy's, Tramps, and Thieves!**

**Author – **Benaboo

**Disclaimer – **Sam Dean Bobby and Castiel belong to Kripke I'm just borrowing them for this story.

**Notes – **Ok this is to everyone who has been reading and keeping up with this, or that will be when they have the time…

**Shout Outs -** This next chapter is dedicated to a few people…

Lexi – For being my SPN soul mate and fellow Sam girl, and always being there when I need to talk and vent. Lexi, girl, we will SO be sharing an SPN heaven, with Sam and Dean in togas and guy liner re – enacting RHPS! =)

Rick – Thank you for letting me rant about my problems, I take back everything I said about you being a wimpy California boy…. LOL ok maybe not everything, but at least some of it! You're a great friend! =P

Manda – For being my sounding board, someone I can bounce my thoughts off of and know that in return, I wouldn't receive any judgment, just good advice. I love you so very much, words cannot express! ~HUGS~

Bryn – Just for believing in me and making me feel I can do that one thing I've always most wanted to do with my life. You're sweet and awesome and I am so very glad we met, my life has been better with you in it! =D

Jon - You put up with my gaming obsessions, and my goofy, pissed off ramblings about Connor, and most importantly everything I get down on myself for and in return I get nothing but respect and thoughtfulness from you. You deal with my craziness so well, it's endearing and adorable and I just love ya for it. ~HUGS~ =D

Liss – For being one of the first people to tell me that you'd buy anything I write! Thank you for that, it means so much to me and I love ya chocolate girl =D ~HUGS~

I apologize for the time between chapters, I've been super crazy busy! I want to wrap this story up in 12 chapters or there about, and it's a tie in so the latest episodes have really helped me to make this story more believable… I'll try to do my best not to disappoint you guys!

I'll be making lots of references to later episodes of season five, I can't help it, now that I've seen most of the season I'm gonna add a few things in.

Enjoy this chapter!

Love,

Bena

**Chapter Seven – Stuck In The Middle With You**

Sam Winchester was frustrated.

There was nothing he could do to get the glamour spell going the way it was supposed to, and he just seemed to be missing something he needed. He was kicking himself for not bringing in the books, but he just didn't think of it at the time. So now they we're back to square one, nothing coming to mind to get them out of the mess they were in. The demons had been quiet now for a while, no more breaking glass or objects on fire coming in to try and smoke them out. That fact alone made Sam more nervous than he had been before.

"Dean it's been hours, do you think we chance another look out the window?" He asked.

Dean shrugged. "It couldn't hurt. Just be careful Sammy, it's dark now, so we're at a disadvantage."

The younger Winchester just nodded and took a deep breath before he very carefully lifted his head up to the edge of the window and peeked out into the darkness that had finally settled on the sleepy Wisconsin town. It took his eyes a minute to adjust, since the demons had blown out the power from the motel and nearby streetlamps, but eventually he focused and the parking lot slowly came into view. Sam crinkled his brow in a worried wrinkled and slid back down, turning to face Dean, and Samantha, who was still sitting beside the older Winchester.

"Ok, I'm not sure this is a good sign." He stated flatly. Dean gave him a puzzled look and Sam elaborated. "There's nothing out there; the crowd of demons aren't in the parking lot anymore."

His brother responded, the tiredness in his voice obvious. "That doesn't mean much; you know they're probably still out there, so I'm not sure that changes anything."

"I know that Dean, but just maybe it's the break we need." Sam thought for a minute then looked at Samantha. "Hey Sam, do we have any salt left?"

The little redhead exhaled in a tired manner, and shook her head. "I have no idea. I don't think we used it all on the demons that attacked last night, but I don't see the bag in the room anywhere."

Dean took the opportunity to speak up. "What do you have in mind Sam?"

"It could be a long shot, but if we had the salt we could run to the Impala and if anything came at us we'd at least have the salt to keep the demons out. I don't see any other way out otherwise. We don't have any books, and we can't get a hold of Castiel or Bobby. We have to risk something." He paused and gave Dean a serious look. "We have to make a run for it; it's our only option right now."

"It is risky. Damn Sam, I don't want to take a chance with these girl's lives, not after…" Dean hesitated, and Sam was sure he almost shed some tears, but the older Winchester got himself under control quickly. "Son of a bitch!" He slammed his hand against the wall under the window he was sitting under making Sam flinch and the two girl's jump, before he continued. "I'm very sad to say that I would rather deal with zombies right now than demons."

Sam sighed. "Yeah, well, be careful what you wish for Dean."

"Well who knows Sam, we could get lucky and Milla Jovovich would kick some zombie ass for us." Dean snarked, and then he got a bit of a dreamy look on his face. "I can just imagine the outfit…" but he didn't get to finish before he felt a jab in the ribs. He looked down to see Samantha giving him an irritated look and back pedaled a bit. "Well, you know, because a zombie hunter would come in handy."

Sam rolled his eyes. "Whatever; look Dean, we have to do something, it's obvious that Cas and Bobby aren't on their way, or if they are they haven't made it yet or ran into trouble of their own. There's no one but us."

Dean yelled, tired of everything that was going on. "I know that Sam! I know!" The moment the words were out of his mouth in anger he immediately regretted it. Time was ticking on them, and with the apocalypse and Sam supposedly saying yes to Lucifer no matter what he did to try and change it, now was not the time to get on his brother's case. In a much calmer voice he addressed Sam again, in a much softer tone.

"I'm sorry I snapped Sam, I'm just tired."

Sam sighed. "I know so am I."

Silence came then for a few minutes, everyone just mulling over the situation. That's all that passed though before Dean spoke up, not knowing what else to do and just wanting this to be over.

"Alright, we may as well try it, not much else we can do really." He looked down at Samantha and smile at her. "Are you gonna be up for this sweetheart?"

She nodded her head. "I'll be fine; I'm more concerned about my sister." She moved her head around Dean. "Cori, are you gonna be up for this?" she asked very gently.

Cori was now sitting beside the younger Winchester at the other window that he had been able to coax her to, still not speaking, but much calmer than she had been earlier that evening. It had taken a while for Sam to get her to stop crying and clinging to him, but once he did she was able to make it to the other side of the room and take cover with the rest of them. She looked at Samantha and nodded her head, but it was plain to see that she was still not herself, so the younger Baker girl left it at that and addressed the boys.

"Alright then, what exactly do you have in mind Sam? If we're gonna do it we need to hear it and work out the details."

Sam nodded and laid out his idea, Dean and the girls listening intently because none of them could afford not to. It didn't take long for Sam to outline his plan since there wasn't much to it really. When he was done, he looked around at the others, hoping they wouldn't think it was a crazy idea, even though he knew it was. It was bold and maybe a little suicidal, but since when wasn't there a day in the lives of the Winchesters that weren't?

"I know, it's crazy, and basically we're just running for our lives, but it's all I've got and I think it's all we can do to get out of here." Sam blew a strand of his long chocolate locks out of his eyes and looked at his brother.

Dean nodded. "It is, but like you said, it's all we've got right now. I mean, it worked for us before, it might do it now, although I'm not sure how we can get the volume."

Sam scratched his head. "Yeah, we'll have to do that part by the seat of our pants, I'm thinking. Nothing we're not already used to."

"We're not by ourselves though Sammy; we have these girls to protect this time." Dean looked away as he said it, not his usual confident self, his brother knowing the reason why.

"Hey! We're not defenseless little dainty Pretty Women, we can hold our own! I like the idea, beats sitting here waiting for them to pick us off one by one. Although I want to fight, I should fight! That's the only thing I'm taking issue with." Samantha had a look of grim resolve and determination on her face that told the boys she wouldn't budge on what her part should be.

Dean admired her courage, but he was very frightened for her, that she may not make it. "Sam, sweetheart, they'll be coming at us really fast, from all sides, we can't afford to have you be a target, and with a weapon you'll be a target."

The little redhead just rolled her eyes. "I know that, but who says they won't try and pick me and Cori off in the first place anyway? For some reason you haven't told us yet, those demons out there won't harm you, or at least they won't hurt Sam. The rest of us are sitting ducks on the water anyway, and I'm sorry, if I'm gonna go out at all it's gonna be fighting those demon fuck tards, not standing there with a bag of salt in my hand like a meek and helpless little girl!"

Dean looked up at Sam smiling, as his brother was at him. The Winchester boys really liked these girls, they had grit and determination and they definitely were anything but weak. Dean saw the fighting spirit he wished he still had some days in the 13 year old Samantha Baker, and when she spoke like that it was hard not to love the little pissed off girl. She embodied everything he would love for his little girl to possess, if he had a little girl, and then some. She was completely adorable, and he made a promise to himself right then and there he'd get her through this even if it meant his own life. The angels could resurrect him if they wanted to afterwards, he didn't give a shit, and he damn well was starting to love the kid.

"I know Samantha, I know, but we can't risk you, we have to…" before Sam could finish she interrupted him.

"Protect me? Yeah I know that, but I'm sorry dude, I'm not gonna sit like a duck, forget it. You and Dean could do our part anyway; you two are taller and a bit stronger and I'm sure you can shoot one handed!"

Dean Winchester smiled and gave his head a quick nod. "That's true I suppose. Alright kiddo, you win; you can fight if you have to."

Sam gave Dean a look that said he couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Dean, I adore this kid and her bravado, but there's no way…"

Dean just shook his head. "It's no use dude; these girls were raised much like we were, and I'm going to do all I can to protect them from what's out there, but they should be allowed to fight for themselves if it comes to it. Besides, they won't touch you, so you can do it."

The younger Winchester pinched his nose with his thumb and forefinger and exhaled loudly. "Alright, but if that's the case Dean then you need to bring up the rear." He turned to Samantha. "How good are you at duel wielding?"

Dean raised an eyebrow. "Duel wielding?" he inquired.

Samantha got an excited look in her eyes and bounced a little bit. "Well I've had some training in that, but I was better in WOW!"

Sam laughed. "Cool, what race and class?"

Samantha beamed proudly. "A level 70 blood elf rogue, although my main is a level 80 blood elf priest!"

"I have a level 80…" but Dean cut Sam off before he could finish.

"What the hell are you two talking about? What the hell is a blood elf? What's WOW?"

Samantha looked at Dean like he was from another planet, while Sam gave him the short version. "Oh it's World of Warcraft, a very popular online game that people play, and a blood elf is one of the races you can play."

Dean raised an eyebrow. "You play this game Sammy? How come I didn't know about this?"

"Well I've been playing for a while, especially since I can't always sleep, but honestly I didn't think…" he didn't get to finish though before Samantha cut in again.

"Okay Sam we'll give Dean the rundown on Warcraft later, maybe we can even get him to play, but in the mean time we don't have that much time, so what did you mean about duel wielding?" Sam nodded and reached into his coat, pulling out Ruby's demon killing knife for the four of them to see. "Oh, sweet! Are you gonna let me borrow that?" The little redhead was bursting with excitement.

Sam gave her a very stern look. "Yeah, I am, since Dean thinks it's a good idea and I trust his instincts." Sam looked at his older brother, who seemed to be shocked to hear "trust" and continued. "You said earlier you have one as well, and since Dean has the Colt, you are the next in line knowing how to wield this, unless Cori…"

Samantha shook her head. "Cori is better with a gun, that's for sure." They looked at Cori and she was nodding in agreement, so Sam gave a nod, flipped the knife up so he was holding it by the blade, and offered it to the girl in front of him. She took it from him carefully, with a look of awe and wonder in her eyes.

"This is a thing of beauty boss." She said, as she let her fingers trail over the handle and blade, treating it like it was a brand new pet her parents just bought her. Dean smiled at the pop culture reference, but Sam kept a stern and worried look on his face.

"It is, but just promise me you'll be careful with it." He replied.

The trance Samantha had been in with admiration for the knife broke then, and she looked up at Sam in puzzlement. "I'm sorry Sam; did you say something just now? I wasn't really paying attention.

Dean laughed and Sam shot him an irritated look again as he smiled back at the girl. "I said; just promise me you'll be careful with it."

The redhead nodded her head in a series of short quick nods. "I'll be careful with it, and I'll guard it with my life like it was my own!" That was enough for Sam, and he stood up then, looking out the window. There was still nothing out there, and he checked his cell phone again, but there was still no signal.

"We better get to it then." He said this very worried about the demons still out there.

The rest of them stood, and Dean nodded and spoke somberly. "Alright then, let's get this movable feast on the way."

No one could see her. No "thing" could hear her either. Humans, demons, and lesser angels were nothing she really had to worry about; they had no radar for her kind and could not just sense she was there. They had to work to track her down, just like the Winchester boys had to with the dumb ass Carrigan's, and the self-absorbed Leshii. The Carrigan's and Leshii were poor examples of what they were though, they had grown soft, and commonplace, and when that happens to a god they lose the power, respect and fear that mortals, demons and lesser beings should be giving to them, or being made to give to them. They had deserved their demise, although she had only been privvy to see Sam Winchester chop off Leshii's blonde irritating head at that moment. She only heard about the Carrigan's, she missed that show.

The mocha colored goddess rubbed her arms and snapped out of her thoughts to take a look at the scene in front of her. It was pitch dark out, the moon hiding behind black and purplish foreboding clouds that seemed to refuse to give any living thing below the shining beacon on this night. Not that it bothered her, light and dark were just different shades, they had no bearing on her eyesight, nothing did. She could see very well, and see she did, the motel and the demons crowding around the place, with the Winchesters and those Baker girls, like sharks circling in infested waters. The demons could not do this, she would not allow it, these boys were hers to use as she saw fit, and this would just muck up her plans. No, it could not be permitted, and she would not allow it to be so!

Kali raised her arms, all six of them up in the air and narrowed her eyes in a half closed slant. They glowed red, and her look was determined, in a somewhat seductive way, as the tips of her fingers caught fire and she let loose, aiming and taking down demon after demon until they scattered, some of them leaving permantly, and some of them sticking around but in the shadows, wondering what the hell was happening. She knew they had orders, from higher demons and very liekly Lucifer himself but that did not concern her. The vessels in that room did, and if they were gonna be grabbed by anyone it would be her and the other gods Mercury was assembling.

There were so many demons here though, she was beginning to wonder why. She knew it might have to do with the women that Sam and Dean were protecting, but she also knew enough that the demons wanted to get their hands on Sam for their dark angel, and that Dean they would kill in the process. Not that dying mattered, not for either boy, she knew the angels would just bring them back, perhaps even God himself, but that didn't make her mission any less urgent. She was going to do this, and she was going to do it her way, and she would obliterate any human, demon or angel that got in her way!

There had been about seventy demons down there, but when Kali was done with the purging and "obliteration" there were only about a dozen left alive and they were scattered around, and that was satisfying enough for her. She had to give the boys a way out of this because she needed them, and scattered the demons wouldn't be much of a threat. Or you know dead, and the thought of so many dead demons put a smile on her face. She loved having the power, she was the power, she was older than they realized. She was one of the 'Old Ones' who started the mayhem and mischief on this planet, who should be bowed to and worshipped; not these demons or angels, and certainly not God.

When she was satisfied that her job had been done she turned to walk away, a very human thing to do but she loved walking in the night. The night was her sanctuary, her time to be who she really is, a goddess stalking her prey, or just to love the night air that encompassed her beauty and made it all the more glorius. So she walked, off the ridge and down into the grass that had been cut the morning before, and she inhaled the night, feeling euphoric about her surroundings and what she had just done.

That's when she felt him.

His presence was unmistakable. Kali knew this so well, because she had spent over a millenia with him, so when he was around she tuned into him automatically. He didn't feel like the other gods, he felt more powerful than that, and he smelled like clean sheets and Macintosh apples, the scent of him like an elixir to her. She knew he was her weakness, she couldn't always resist him and she didn't really want to. Even though she knew she would have to at some point, when she nabbed the Winchesters specifically. This was not the first time she had felt him when she had been around the boys, he had shown up a couple of other times as well, but that made no difference to her. No matter what her feelings toward him were she knew who he really was, she had known for quite a while even though he went to great lengths to try and hide who he really was.

She had been there though, watching Sam and Dean when he zapped them into television land, which had been brilliant to her really, but the fact remained the same. He was an angel, the arch angel Gabriel as a matter of fact. That's who he was. That didn't really matter though, she still loved him, she was just furious that he never told her, not after everything they had been through, everything they had done and witnessed together. A part of her wondered though, in the back of her mind, if what they once had was all just a trick to him, Loki, the great trickster that he was, that it had all been just a way for the angels and God to keep an eye on her and the other gods. That maybe he had used her to infiltrate and eventually destroy them, to take them out since they weren't part of God's plan.

That didn't make sense to her though, it just really wasn't his style. Not her Loki, her little trickster that had helped her cause so much panic during the reign of Julius Ceasar, or the times they spent during the Dark Ages together terrorizing the Church for their ignorant ways. Kali most definitely couldn't help but smile though at the memories of them coming to the new world though, all the wars and the trials they had put those humans under all those years ago had been so invigorating, so empowering! The laughs they had after sending the British home with their tails tucked between their legs, twice as it had happened; or the American Civil War, where they had impersonated a well to do confederate couple that goaded Jefferson Davis and his group of slave owners in the South to secede from the North; Bay of Pigs, Korea, Vietnam, ah yes the list went on, and Kali had a thing for war and Gabriel knew that and he catered to her obsession, which made her feel so powerful and alive and sexual, yes, he made her feel that way, like no other god could. Oh she missed those times!

She knew he had to know she was right there, and for a few moments she stood still, just letting him take her in if he watned to. She extended her arms rubbing her neck and back, the moonlight finally bursting through the clouds as if to announce the would not hide this dark, beautiful goddess away, that life itself should bow to her. She turned her head to where she felt him, not looking at him directly, just giving him a small dose of who she still was, and then she took off, her feet leaving the ground, flying into the air and towards Baldur, who was waiting for her and who would take care of the way she wanted to feel, although it wasn't the same, and no one else had ever been good enough for her. Not like her Loki. He might be Gabriel, and she would still do what she had to; to survive what Lucifer and Michael had in store for the planet, she would not hesitate to do what she felt had to be done.

And she sent up a silent prayer, hoping he would hear her.

"Loki, don't get in my way, I don't want to have to hurt you." And she disappeared into the clouds, and they swallowed her up, along with the moonlight.


	8. Chapter 8

**Gypsy's, Tramps, and Thieves!**

**Author – **Benaboo

**Disclaimer – **Sam Dean Bobby and Castiel belong to Kripke I'm just borrowing them for this story.

**Dedication – **This one's for my sister, the history nut =)

**Notes – **ok I'm finally back to this story. I'm gonna do my best to wrap it up in no more than 10 chapters total. I had to get my head around how to end this one and I finally got the idea of where to finally plant it. So I really apologize for the long wait, I just needed a breather. Also I have so many things I'm writing at this time I wanted to jump around a bit.

I know it's not a long chapter, but there's a lot going on here and I did a lot of book style writing for this one. I love description.

Thank you all for being patient. I really hope these last few chapters will be rewarding enough for the wait.

The Bena

**Chapter Eight: Watching for the Moment**

Dean Winchester, once again, dove for cover when the screams began, and the dark night sky outside suddenly became a bright blinding orange light. He looked around for Sam but couldn't see him anywhere, although he was sure his younger brother had been right behind him. Samantha and Cori were not far off to his left, also on the floor cowering beside the bed the farthest side from the wall. Samantha was holding a very frightened Cori and trying to look over the bed at what might be going on, but she couldn't quite seem to get her head high enough to look over it.

'She's fucking fearless.' Dean thought to himself. 'If we make it through this I'm gonna treat the kid to a sno cone.'

"Dean!" Sam's voice knocked him back to the reality of the situation and he rolled up on his legs and ducked behind the bed.

"You alright little brother?"

"Yeah, but you got to come and take a look at this!"

"Are you kidding me? It could be the third world war out there and you want me to sit on the hill with a picnic basket and take in the battle?"

Dean wasn't the studious type, so when he pulled out a nod to the Civil War it baffled him, and he sighed in exasperation. "Dean, just get you're ass over here!" The urgency in Sam's voice made him sigh and he got his bearings and ran around to the window where Sam was cautiously peering out and took a look for himself.

What he saw shocked the hell and scared the crap out of him all at the same time. The demons that had been outside guarding the motel room were one by one spontaneously combusting, the flames destroying their hosts. He figured it was a good chunk of Richland Center, Wisconsin's population being charcoaled out there in the night, and even though they were possessed he felt sorry for the human hosts that were most likely still alive and aware of what was happening to them. The screams were deafening, and the older Winchester had no idea what to make of what was going on, if it was random or if there was something else out there in the dark night that wanted them worse than the demons did.

The first thought that popped in his head was that it could be the angels. It didn't make sense though because when angels exorcised demons they did it with a bright white light, and there would be more vessels out there, fighting for both sides. No, this was something else Dean knew, but what or who it could be he had no idea. All he knew from the scene he was witnessing was that whatever or whomever it could be was a lot more powerful than all the demons that had shown up on them today. Not knowing that was scarier than demons and angels put together.

"Holy shit."

Sam agreed. "I know, right?" He thought for a moment. "What now? Do we change the plan now?"

Dean shook his head. "We stick to the plan. We don't know what's out there but it seems pretty obvious that whatever, whoever it is just gave us an out. That doesn't mean we shouldn't take precautions, just in case some of them escaped. As for whatever is out there doing this there's no way to know what side they're on, or what we can do to protect ourselves."

"Alright." Sam felt unsettled, because it just did not add up to him. The last time he felt this way they had been in Oregon dealing with the Croatoan virus. 'And look how that turned out.' He thought uneasily. He pinched his temples. "If we're gonna do it then we should do it now. The demons knew were we are, and benefactor or not, more will be coming if we don't get out of here."

His brother looked at him, feeling the same way and gave him a blank stare. "Let's motor then." They went about gathering up supplies and the few guns they had to make their break for it, all the time worried that what was out there was something they had never dealt with before.

_**Meanwhile, outside…**_

He kept watch silently, amused for sure, but also slightly irritated. He was tempted to go down there, snap his fingers, and send them into another reality of his creation, but he held back. He could be patient, and when dealing with the Winchester boys he had learned that it was best to wait for the right moment to teach them a lesson, save their asses, or both, which was usually the way it was with those two chuckleheads. He had never in his thousands of years met any human beings more reckless than they were, or more clueless than Elmer Fudd in a dress or the damn coyote chasing after the road runner that he would never ever catch. They weren't careful enough, not with all the damn angels and demons hunting them down, not to mention the "others".

In spite of all that, he really liked them. It was no matter that they were fighting a war they couldn't win, and it didn't matter that the boys believed they could change a destiny already written in the "word". They were trying; he knew that, he just wished he didn't have to see all of the bad shit hit the fan, although he knew that wouldn't be the way it went. 'Damn. I'm gonna die saving those boys.' How and when he didn't know, he just knew. And he knew it was gonna be soon, since the big standoff between Lucifer and Michael was less than 6 months away. It was also written.

He shook his head as he watched the last of the demons fry from Kali's impromptu barbecue. He couldn't help but smile, he just loved her style, loved it when she got mad. He missed her, loved her even, didn't matter that she was a pagan goddess, hell bent on wrath. It didn't matter that she was trying to take down Lucifer, even if she had told the other gods it was possible to deal their way out of his plans for global domination. There was no way out of this for her or any of the others, just like the angels and humans already sucked into the big mess. It was the apocalypse, and all bets were off. His brothers would tear this planet apart and roast it like a pig on an open spit. Kali or any other god, angel, or person that got in the way would be taken care of quickly and decisively, along with most of the planet.

And for as much as he liked Sam and Dean, that was the one thing he could not tell them. That they had been lied to they would be sure to believe, but this fight wouldn't just tear apart half the planet; It would tear apart the entire planet, with less than 1 percent of the human population left to pick up what little pieces there would be left, the people that had no destination to either Heaven or Hell doomed to live out their lives in a venerable wasteland of depression and desperation. He loved his father, really he did, but some of his methods were a bit extreme to him at times. He couldn't bear to see the Winchester boys give up either, and if he told them everything he had no clue as to what would happen. He didn't know how they would react, and he didn't want to break their spirits.

Because deep down inside, the arch angel known as Gabriel was hoping Sam and Dean Winchester would find some way to save the planet, the humans, and the surrogate family he had come to know and love so much.

Again it didn't matter. He wouldn't be around to see if they succeeded, he already knew this. As much as Sam and Dean had been fighting their destiny he had been fighting his. All the shit he put them through was a way of him trying to deal with his own destiny that loomed in the immediate future. He remembered the day God told him that he would be one of the angels to stand on the side of humanity, that they would need him and that he would sacrifice himself for them, and he had run away from Heaven, because it was the final straw after everything leading up to that. Gabriel had been determined to leave it all behind; all of the prophecies, and all of the talk how the Winchesters would be the ones to carry all of them out, including his role to play in it.

He knew it wouldn't matter, that it would catch up with him, but he still tried. There was one other option he had left, but he was saving it until he got the boys alone, and away from Kali and her well thought out plans to use them as bait to trap Lucifer. It was his final gift to them, to give them a little end of the world fun before they got serious and tried to end this mess. If he was going to go out, he was going to do it with style. That was just his way.

Just then he saw the boys come out the door, along with the two Baker girls still alive, loaded down with salt and guns and checking out the parking lot to make sure the coast was clear. Gabriel knew it wasn't, there were still a few demons down there, but it was nothing the boys couldn't handle. His job here was done. The boys would make it anyway, up until that final battle that is. Besides, he needed to keep an eye on Kali. There was no way he would let her die in such a vane ass struggle; he cared too much for her to let that happen.

With one last shake of his head at the boys he flew up and out after Kali, after his heart that she still owned.

_**Across town…**_

Castiel snapped to attention, the Winchester boys back on his radar, and took off from the room in a flurry of wings and wind. Bobby looked around at the others in the room and rolled his eyes.

"Damn angel. Idjiot."

And the angel known as Castiel appeared right between Dean and the Impala, looking worried, but glad they were ok.

"Dean." The renegade looked him over quickly, making sure there was no harm done to him. "You seem well."

The older Winchester startled, as he was still not use to Cas just popping up in front of him, and cursed out loud.

"Jesus Christ Cas, stop doing that shit!" he exclaimed as he kept his eyes perusing the darkness for any demons that might still be lurking.

"I am sorry Dean, I'll try to remember, but you really shouldn't take the Lord's name in vain, especially around the children."

Before Dean could answer, Samantha spoke up. "Oh for the love of fucking God, we don't have time for this bullshit!" Dean smiled and thought he'd buy this kid the world if he could. If he could keep her alive that is.

As Castiel just stared at her Sam cleared his throat and spoke up in a strained voice. "Listen Cas, it's good to see you, but we don't know how many demons are still around us, we need to get these girls out of here."

The celestial being looked around at the charred corpses littering the parking lot, and gave a curt nod. "Yes. Many are dead but I still sense a few around."

"Alright." Dean gave Samantha and Cori a pitying look before turning back to Cas. "We're going to get out of here. Where's Bobby?"

"He's with the rest of the children at a motel in Madison. They are all unharmed." He took a piece of paper out of his pocket and handed it to Dean. "Here is the address, but I'm thinking since I can sense you again your cell phones might work now."

"Understood." Dean took the paper, and lowered his voice as best he could. "Their sister Lisa is lying dead on the floor in the room back there. She doesn't deserve to be left lying there, she needs to be buried."

"I can take care of that." And as quick as he appeared, Cas disappeared, leaving them all looking around, annoyed and a bit on edge.

The brothers shook their heads at each other. They made it to the car, threw what they had in the trunk with the exception of a few guns and some salt, and sped off towards the capital city to reunite with Bobby and who was left of the Baker family…

.. And hoped with all they had that they could keep anymore of them from dying.

Crowley watched as the boys drove away, his trademark smirk planted firmly on his face. Everything he had set in motion was beginning to unfold; he just had to wait for the right moment to align him with the boys and their plan to put Lucifer in the pit. They didn't know they were going to do it yet, but he did, and he was waiting for it. In the meantime, however, he had to play along, play stupid, and keep the pressure on them until it neared the time they would meet the Devil in Detroit. He had to keep them busy, keep them desperate.

He knew the Colt wouldn't work, he was a demon after all, and demons lied, and he was the king of all liars. He hadn't earned the "King of the Crossroads" reputation for nothing. Pity that the blonde girl had to die, really, he would have liked to do unspeakable things to her, but such was life. He had other, bigger things to get to at the moment. A series of events, slow brewing for the past five years, would be unleashed by him at once, to get the boys to do what they had to do, to stop Lucifer, give him access to the souls he needed, and allow him to take over Hell.

Life was grand.

These women were just a stumbling block he hadn't counted on. It amazed him that Sam and Dean couldn't see the family resemblance, but it didn't surprise him. When he had called them functioning morons, he'd meant it. They wouldn't know anything if it bit them in the arse or any of their naughty bits, for that matter. The thing he had to worry about was tracking down and using as many of the Campbell/Winchester line as he could, since they were the key to unraveling the secrets that could possibly bring peace on Earth, without any more demons, angels, or gods to interfere.

And he couldn't have that. He wouldn't have that. He would be king, first of Hell, then the Earth, and then of everything.

It was the reason he was tracking them. He had to know what they were up to and what they were doing so he could stay a few steps or more ahead of them. Sam especially, could be really smart when he wanted to be, but Dean had surprised him on occasion. John Winchester and Bobby Singer had both taught those boys very well, so at times it was a bit of a challenge. Crowley knew he could only track them through the Impala, but it was enough for him not to miss much of what was going on. These women, however, he needed to keep an eye on them, and he was sure that the morons would cough up their location to him eventually, since they had long talks in the car on their way to wherever they had to save a life or two.

Which made him a bit sick, but if it meant him realizing his dreams, then Crowley figured he could handle letting a few human beings live… he'd need slaves eventually anyway. All kings do.

He whistled and two of his minions were at his side in less than seconds. That was respect. That was power. He thrived on it.

"You know what to do. Need I remind you buggers that if they catch you, then you're on your own?" They shook their heads and he smiled. "Great. I'll leave it to you then." He was about to walk away when something else occurred to him. "Don't let any harm come to them. Not a scratch on those boys' heads, I swear, or you'll wish that I just took you to the woodshed." They just looked at him in fear and shock, and he rolled his eyes and swore. "Bugger, that's all you bloody bastards, now get out of here!" They snapped out of it, nodded and took off after the Winchesters.

Crowley took off too, the last thought on his mind as he vacated the state of Wisconsin being why he was always surrounded by such incompetent morons.


	9. Chapter 9

**Gypsy's, Tramps, and Thieves!**

**Author – **Benaboo

**Disclaimer – **Sam Dean Bobby and Castiel belong to Kripke I'm just borrowing them for this story.

**Dedication – **This one's for my old SPN friends…Lexi, Liss, Chels, Ella, Bryn, Krissy and Tam. I miss you guys.

**Notes – **I am so sorry this has taken so long to finish. I've been sidetracked with moving twice and life and I feel bad I haven't put an end on this for all of you who read and support my stories. I have the last chapter after this written, and an outline for a sequel to this story which I will get to as I'm wrapping up my Hell Mouths and Whiskey crossover. That may take a while though as I love to write, but I do like taking my time and getting my ideas to coincide as much as possible with the shows I write about. Not to mention I do have other writing projects on my plate I intend to tackle.

**Chapter Nine: Flee The Demons**

As the Impala sped down the highway east out of Richland Center, Sam sat in the back with Cori, looking out the windows and mirroring the other as they watched each others back. Samantha sat up front with Dean, on high alert with gun held up to the window in preparation of a demon attack. The eldest Winchester drove fast yet cautious, his left hand on the wheel and his right touching his sidearm on the seat beside him, also checking all mirrors and the road ahead of him for any trace of the demon swarm they had left behind. Well, what was left of them who hadn't spontaneously combusted that is. Dean was still trying to wrap his head around that one. There weren't many things as a hunter that surprised him, but this one had made the list. He could swear he hadn't been this confused since they had first encountered the Croatoan virus.

"Dean?" Sam's voice floated up to him from the backseat.

"What is it?"

"What just happened back there?"

Dean sighed. "Hell if I know Sam! Didn't we already cover that?"

"I suppose we did." Sam paused, looking out windows as they sped through the Wisconsin countryside, darkness blanking the farmland for miles of which he couldn't see. "I guess this silence is just disquieting to me."

"You mean as opposed to quieting?"

"You know what I mean Dean. There are no demons following us, or at least that we can see. I don't like it. Don't know what to think at this point, and it almost feels like the Croatoan bit all over again."

Dean raised his voice, hating when his younger brother voiced his own thoughts out loud. "Dude, knock on wood!"

Sam crinkled his brow. "What?"

"Knock on wood Sammy! You just jinxed us by mentioning Croatoan out loud! Knock on wood!"

"I'm not gonna knock on wood Dean."

"Sam!"

"You're being ridiculous. Besides, there's no wood in Baby, so I couldn't even if I wanted to."

"Dammit Sam, I don't care! Find some wood somewhere and knock on it! Grab a passing tree if you have to! I'll be damned if I have to go through another Croatoan situation! And don't call my baby Baby!"

Castiel's voice came from the backseat then, as he magically appeared out of thin air, right between Sam and Cori, making everyone jump in fright. "Take a chill Dean."

"It's take a pill or chill out Cas; and when someone mentions demons and Croatoan in the same sentence I get twitchy!"

Sam cleared his throat. "Actually, sentence structure wise, I didn't mention demons and Croatoan at the same time Dean."

Dean banged his hand on the steering wheel. "You just did it again."

"I did not!" Sam yelled.

"Did too!"

"Did not!"

"Don't make me turn this car over children." Castiel interjected matter-of-factly.

"Its turn the car around Cas!" Both Sam and Dean yelled at him at the same time.

The car grew silent for more than a few minutes and when Dean finally spoke his voice was straining with irritation. "Why are you popping in us Cas?"

"The few heavenly contacts I still possess have informed me that there is someone rounding up an army of demons, preparing for something big."

"That would explain the motel. Lucifer?" Dean asked.

"Perhaps. Nothing about these children though. No one seems to know anything about the Bakers."

"Figures. Our mom didn't have time to tell us anything either before we went on the run; except to get in touch with Bobby." Samantha chimed in.

"It could be Lucifer behind all this, but it's a lacking of his, how would you say, his style? I don't see or sense any demons within miles of us at the moment, not that all demons are loyal to him. I have no idea as to what this plan could be."

Sam turned a few shades whiter than he already was. "Oh no…"

"Sam?" Dean asked.

"Dean, what if they deciding to track down Bobby's group? Can we get a call out to him right now?"

Dean had his phone flipped and calling Bobby before Sam could finish. It was ringing.

"Come on Bobby, come on…" the phone was answered on the fifth ring, shouts, car swerving, noises and gunfire in the background.

"Dean now isn't a good time!" Bobby yelled into the phone.

"Shit, Bobby, where are you?"

"Getting ready to head toward you yahoos!"

"You're mobile?" Dean asked, worry abounding in his voice.

"What did I say before Idjiot? Not yet! I have a pack of demons on my ass! Now meet us as soon as you can. Hopefully I can ditch the black-eyed bastards before…" the call was dropped and Dean swore.

"Dammit!" He revved the car 30 miles per hour past the speed limit, and Castiel poofed out.

Bobby was about to start peeing in his wheelchair, as Castiel suddenly appeared, taking out the remaining two demons that had attacked, and damn near diving him a heart attack in the process.

"Jesus Cas! You cut that one close!" he exclaimed, mostly relieved they were saved in time from the fallen angel.

Castiel gave a slight nod. "I do apologize. Sam and Dean are on the way, and I popped in because Dean said you needed assistance."

Trish gave a heavy sigh of relief behind them, and they turned to face her. "They're alright then?"

Castiel gave her a sympathizing look. "Lisa did not make it. I am sorry."

Trish sat abruptly down in the chair she was standing next to, Ali covered her face in her hands, and Jimmy shed silent tears as he held a sleeping Susie, who, for some odd reason, had slept right through the demon attack, don't ask him how. The young Baker boy felt that was for the best, since he knew how hard it would be to calm her down from this. Right now they needed to regroup and get their stuff together, meet up with Samantha and Cori, and see that they were ok with their own eyes. He swallowed back what he could, sniffled, and spoke up to the adults and angel in the room with him.

"What's the plan? Are we staying here or are we going to meet our family and the Winchesters?" he asked quietly.

The angel regarded the young boy with a respectful gaze. "The Winchesters gave me a rendezvous location about halfway in between both respective parties. You should all get into Bobby's van and start heading there. Be cautious. I sense more demons around; I have no idea how they knew you were here."

"Where are we supposed to meet those damn yahoos anyway?" the older man asked.

Castiel spoke without batting an eyelash. "They will meet us just outside the Spring of the Green, in the parking lot of the Eagle's Cave."

Bobby rolled his eyes. "You mean Spring Green's Eagle Cave? I know where that is."

"Yes…" the angel replied in his monotone voice. "It's off US Hwy 14 going west, and then you turn left onto WI 60 and make a right on…"

"Yes Castiel, I know where it is." Bobby repeated himself.

The angel continued as if he never said a word. "…Eagle Cave Drive and then a left on Cavern Lane, and right to stay on Cavern Lane…"

"Cas!" Bobby said firmly.

But he kept on. "16320 Cavern Lane…"

"Cas you Idjiot! I got it already!" This time Bobby yelled loudly, which woke little Susie from her nap.

It was quiet for a few moments and all Jimmy had time for was to think 'Crap!' and then 3 things happened all at once.

Castiel finished. "Blue River, WI 53518."

Bobby called the angel a string of expletives.

Susie broke out into wailing sobs.

Jimmy took in the scenario. While Ali got in the mix with Bobby and the weirdo angel, he did his best to calm Susie down again. He held her, rocked her, said soothing words to her, but nothing worked. The truth of the matter was that if the adults in the room didn't stop screaming and arguing, his little sister wouldn't stop, and Jimmy had run out of patience; not with Susie, of course, but the grown ups, who were acting more like bratty school children than responsible care-givers should.

The young Baker was fed up. He looked around at them.

Bobby was still yelling bad, mean words at the angel.

Castiel was frustrated with the wheelchair bound man, and was making strange statements about demons, pizza, and cheese.

Ali was trying to break up the fight and calm Trish down at the same time, as she had not stopped bawling at the news of Lisa's death.

The younger Bakers might as well have been invisible.

Jimmy grabbed a glass of half full soda on the bedside table next to him and threw it towards them in an angry fit. It found its mark, shattered, and spewed bits of glass and the sticky liquid all over them. In a bizarre part of his mind, Jimmy wondered if you would be able to see a rainbow or two from it if it had been light out.

Everyone in the room fell silent. Forget the pin; you could hear a feather hit the floor. It was nice and quiet, which had been Jimmy's desired effect, and now all their eyes were on him. He was glad for that. He was so angry and he felt it was time they heard what he had to say. He wasn't in a very nice mood, and when he spoke his words and tone reflected that.

"What the hell is wrong with you people?"

"Jimmy watch you're…"Ali tried to interrupt, but the young boy was angry and did not give her the chance.

"No fucking way! Look at your sister! She started to glance at Trish, but he corrected her. "Wrong sister." Ali looked at Susie then, lying beside Jimmy. "You guys are making her even more upset with all of your silly bickering, and childish screaming! You're pissing me off, so knock it off!"

"Listen son…" but now Bobby got shut down by the boy who was wise beyond his years.

"Don't you 'listen me' ya old coot! You and that damn weirdo angel are acting worse than a bunch of me and Susie on the schoolyard playground! We're kids, so it's allowed. You people, however, are adults and a celestial being! Pull your head out of your ass! Act like the grown ups your supposed to be! We need you guys, not a lame group of adults playing kindergarten! Idjiots!"

There was a lot of silence, while everyone around him took in his words; himself included. Ali broke it though, trying to get the conversation back on the current situation, and speaking between Trish's sniffles and nose blowing. Bobby and Castiel remained silent, both pairs of eyes astonished and staring at Jimmy Baker.

"We'll have time to grieve later. We need to focus on the people we love still alive out there that are in danger."

Jimmy nodded. "We need to leave and meet them before more demons decide to show up; the sooner, the better."

Bobby nodded back at him. "Ok kid, you've made your point. I think the best way though, is to travel in small numbers; split up the larger demonic forces to try to divide and confuse." He looked to the angel. "Do you think you can take the young ones to the rendezvous point while the girls and I load up and move out?"

"I have enough power for a few teleports if need be." Castiel walked to the young Baker children and touch their shoulders with each hand. "This could cause you to vomit, nose bleed, faint, or a number of other side effects, but it's the quickest way to go." Before Jimmy could ask anything, they were gone.

Crowley was not happy.

The Winchesters, and that pesky bloody angel, and some powerful pagan god type were ruining how he kept tabs on them and his coveted Baker children. It didn't help the Bobby prick was rolling around in the game still, although he figured he could use that to his advantage later, or to the Jolly Green Giant and his man slut brother. The question he had to ask himself is did he want Lucifer gone, and the resounding answer in his head was always yes. The Baker girls were a product of a deal made long ago, and rightfully his by stake and claim, his own little slice of angelic/demonic breeding, and after this whole mess with the Hardy Boys and Forest Gimp, he needed them as an ace if those boys pissed their mission down the road. Even kings of Hell needed insurance.

As for the Young Baker boy, he was expendable. Baker men were generally just ponces and wankers, and they died so easily. It was the women in the family that had the real power. He killed a few demons for failing to kill the kid, but he knew it was hard when he had Bobby Singer protection. At least killing off the demons helped him blow some steam. And he did not mind the older girls being killed off either. Younger children were so much easier to corrupt, the younger, the better in fact. He wanted the redhead, but the little one, the one they called Susie would be extremely valuable. She was the real prize…

…but for all of that, Crowley was a realist. He knew he may not get his claws into them, at least not now. He could be a patient demon and would wait until the right moment, which was not now. The fact was he needed those damn Winchesters, no matter if he liked it or not, which was a never ending source of frustration for him.

"It took you long enough to realize that. A little slow in the head there, aren't ya Crowfeet?"

He turned around with his charming smile directed at the angel in front of him. "I didn't think angels could read thoughts, but then you're not a normal angel, are you Gabriel?"

The arch angel turned trickster snapped his fingers and guffawed. "I guess you know who I am, although I'm curious how since I've been incognito."

"Don't play coy with me Gabe. I do my research when it's due. Give me some credit."

Gabriel laughed, and gave Crowley a condescending smile. "Stop lying. You know I can see seven ways through all of your bullshit. Try again."

Crowley stopped smiling. "I suppose I do. What do you want and what can I do to make you go away you bloody two bit twit?"

The arch angel gave the demon a glare hotter than the white of Heaven. "Lay off my boys. I don't know what you're up to, but they have more important things to deal with other than you and your pitiful little low level demon flunkies. A bait and switch is in play. You know the stakes. You might not come out of this how you want if you don't fall back."

The would-be king of Hell raised his eyebrow. "Is that a threat?"

Gabriel smirked. "Take it how you want." He started to fly off, but thought better of it and turned back to the demon once again. "Really, how did you know who I was? Who told you?"

"A good reporter doesn't betray their sources. Have a good day." Crowley turned, heard a flutter of angelic wings that made him sick, and knew he was alone. He poured himself a glass of vintage scotch, and took a long drink.

And he smiled.


End file.
